"Aspects Suggest Uneven Playing Field": Shashi Tharoor On Congress Poll

Shashi Tharoor said he would have refused to pull out of the Congress chief elections had he been asked to do so.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor Sunday conceded the party's quest to elect a new chief - its first non-Gandhi boss in 23 years - was off to a shaky start with the introduction of a pro-establishment candidate in his opponent Mallikarjun Kharge.

"There are some aspects that suggest an uneven playing field," he said at an NDTV townhall in Mumbai, disclosing some leaders had told him they were "under pressure" to back Mr Kharge, seen as choice of the Gandhis.

However, he refused to ascribe any blame on party chief Sonia Gandhi and son Rahul Gandhi.

"The Gandhi family has made it clear, also through Mr [Madhusudan] Mistry, that there's no official candidate. I am assuming that there's no official candidate. But some people in the party are assuming that there's an official candidate," Mr Tharoor said.