Thiruvananthapuram- A political storm has erupted within the Congress party after MP Shashi Tharoor's recent comments praising Kerala's development drew unexpected support from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the Left front. The situation prompted AICC General Secretary K.C. Venugopal to intervene with Tharoor as party supporters expressed their displeasure on social media.

Opposition Leader V.D. Satheesan has now mounted a strong counter-offensive, presenting detailed data to challenge the state government's development claims. At a Monday press conference, Satheesan accused the Vijayan administration of excelling at public relations while falling short on actual achievements, citing the recent BBC correction regarding Kerala's Covid response as an example.

Satheesan particularly contested the government's claims about infrastructure development, asserting that major projects like the Kochi Metro, Vizhinjam Port, GAIL pipeline, and highway improvements were actually initiated by the previous Congress-led UDF government, despite facing opposition from Vijayan at the time.

He also challenged the state's business development narrative, noting that the World Bank had discontinued its ease of doing business rankings in 2021. Satheesan questioned the government's claim of establishing over 300,000 new businesses, arguing that such growth would have significantly impacted Kerala's GDP share, which remains steady at 3.8 percent according to national economic performance indicators.

The opposition leader cited official K-SWIFT data showing only 64,528 MSME registrations between January 2022 and February 2025, far below the government's claims. He drew parallels to Tharoor's previous stance on the K-Rail project, suggesting that the MP might revise his position once presented with complete information.

The controversy has drawn comment from Tourism Minister P. Mohammed Riyas, who suggested that Congress leaders now attack anyone who speaks positively about Kerala. With local body elections approaching and assembly polls on the horizon, the Congress high command has urged restraint to prevent the Left and BJP from capitalizing on these internal disagreements.