Hours after Congress MP Shashi Tharoor "accepted" an open debate challenge by Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Union Minister responded with a troika of questions on the development of Thiruvananthapuram, further flaring up the electoral battle with little more than a week left for the 18th Lok Sabha Elections.
Slamming Tharoor, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) face from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency took to microblogging site X with his response and questions.
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In his post, Chandrasekhar accused Tharoor of disseminating false information. Further elaborating on his accusations, the Union Minister shared a set of questions for Tharoor.
>> "Who are the leaders of these socio-religious organizations who purportedly took money from me? Why did you choose to tarnish the reputation of those honorable people?"
>> "In your 15-year political career, did you ever approach these leaders with similar proposals, or did you receive such undue requests from them?"
>> "Are you willing to put a stop to this politics of misinformation and outright lies?"
Earlier in the day, Tharoor took to microblogging site X, accepting the Union Minister's challenge for a debate over the development in the region.
"Yes, I welcome a debate. But the people of Thiruvananthapuram are aware of who has been evading a debate till now. Let us debate politics and development. Let us debate price hike, unemployment, corruption, communalism and the BJP's 10 years of propagating politics of hatred," Tharoor said on X.
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He said that he is ready to discuss the development of Thiruvananthapuram and the visible progress it has made in the last 15 years since has been an MP.
Thiruvananthapuram will witness a high-voltage showdown between Tharoor and Chandrasekhar in the 18th Lok Sabha elections.
Tharoor has served as the representative for Thiruvananthapuram in the lower house since 2009 and holds the distinction of being elected thrice from this constituency.
Chandrasekhar, currently serving as the Union Minister of State for Information Technology and Skill Development, will be making his debut in the Lok Sabha elections.
The BJP is optimistic about Chandrasekhar's candidacy, given his familial ties to Thrissur, and views it as a potential breakthrough in Thiruvananthapuram, further signaling the party's efforts to expand its presence in southern regions.
The party has prioritised many Lok Sabha seats in the state, where it had performed better in the past elections with a rise in vote share, though it could never win a parliamentary seat in Kerala.
Kerala will vote in a single phase in the upcoming general election on April 26.
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