Congress President election: Shashi Tharoor on Thursday rejected rumours that he's going to withdraw his nomination from contesting for the party's top post.
"Rumours I am going to withdraw (nomination) are false. I am receiving so much support that if I wouldn't have been democratically inclined, I would have asked the other candidate to withdraw," Tharoor said.
"I'm here to fight for a strong Congress party that can take on the formidable machine of BJP in 2024. This (upcoming election for Congress President) is not a battle between rivals but a friendly contest between different approaches," Tharoor added.
Tharoor said that he wants to change the Congress into a "party of young India", and his support base is swelling.
He also said that the youth who are the future of the country was backing him and added that 65 per cent of the population of the country are below 35, and his expectations are on this young generation.
He also said the Gandhi family welcomed free and fair polls and the family has not indicated support for any candidate. Tharoor said that party colleagues from across the country have urged him to contest the elections.
The senior Congress leader also said that he was getting "good ground support from Tamil Nadu", adding and that he is confident of the outcome of the polls.
Earlier, Tharoor paid floral tributes to the memorials of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu K. Kamaraj.
Meanwhile, Tharoor's competitor Mallikarjun Kharge will start his campaign for the presidential election from October 6 onwards from Gujarat.
He will visit Sabarmati Ashram and the PCC office of Gujarat Congress in Ahmedabad tomorrow.
Congress presidential candidate Mallikarjun Kharge will also visit the Maharashtra Congress office at Mumbai's Tilak Bhawan tomorrow.
(With inputs from IANS)
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