Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, who has had differences of opinion with party colleagues of late, said he has been loyal to the Congress for the last 16 years and that disagreements can be sorted "behind closed doors" with the people concerned.

Speaking to NDTV, Tharoor said, "If there are any differences, it should be discussed behind closed doors with the people concerned, and that is where I want to leave it."

The Centre's move to pick Shashi Tharoor to lead an outreach delegation to the US did not go well with his party, especially his praises about Prime Minister Narendra Modi on handling the Pahalgam terror attack and then Operation Sindoor have pissed off a section of Congress leaders.

According to reports, Tharoor had not campaigned for the party candidate in Nilambur as "he had not been invited".

"It was a response to a Malayalam question... I said I wished the Congress candidate well. I wish him all success. He is a friend of mine. In fact, as far as I am concerned there is no doubt that the hard work of Congress workers deserve the reward of victory," Tharoor told NDTV.

Asked how he would define his relationship with the Congress today, Tharoor said, "I have been someone who has stayed with the party and been loyal for the last 16 years".

He said over this period, he has also developed close bonds with many colleagues and party workers.

Shashi Tharoor had been one of the most prominent members leading an outreach delegation team to the US, Panama, among others, as part of the Indian government's effort to explain the need for Operation Sindoor to partner countries and to expose Pakistan's role in harbouring cross-border terrorism.