- By Aditya Jha
- Mon, 16 Feb 2026 01:10 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Congress veteran leader Mani Shankar Aiyar has sparked controversy by claiming that despite a strong anti-incumbency, the Congress will not be able to win the upcoming Kerala Assembly election. Aiyar, to support his argument, asserted that the grand old party will not win the polls due to the internal conflicts. He claimed that the Congress leaders hate each other more than the communists in Kerala. However, Congress leaders stated that Aiyar has no connection with the party and his remarks were in personal capacity.
Aiyar's remarks came after he openly endorsed Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for the upcoming polls at an international seminar titled "Vision 2031: Development and Democracy". "I must fall at your feet, Chief Minister Vijayan, and request you to pick up the baton that the Congress has dropped. Thank you, and may Kerala prosper," he stated.
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On being asked why he spoke in the favour of Congress' arch rival CPI (M), Aiyar stated that the grand old party's leader in the southern states are divided. "I want the Congress to win, but I don't believe it will because Congress leaders are divided. They hate each other more than they hate the Communists," Aiyar was quoted as saying by NDTV.
However, several Congress leaders, including party General Secretary KC Venugopal, national spokesperson Pawan Khera and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh refuted such claims by stating that Aiyar is no longer connected with the Congress. "His statement that the Pinarayi government will continue in Kerala is a personal opinion. It is not the party’s view. Mani Shankar Aiyar is not currently in the Congress party," KC Venugopal stated.
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Apart from this, Khera, in a post on X, stated that Aiyar speaks in his personal capacity. "Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar has had no connection whatsoever with the Congress for the past few years. He speaks and writes purely in his personal capacity," the Congress spokesperson stated.
While responding to Khera's remarks, Aiyar defined him as "puppet" and suggested Congress to find some other national spokesperson.