Pidgin has a feature called auto-away which will automatically set your chat status to away if your computer hasn’t been active in a certain time.
How to disable auto-away
- Open your Pidgin preferences from the Tools menubar
- Click on the Status/Idle tab
- Change or disable the settings to your preference
Adjust the settings to find out what works best for you. Always remember to set your status to available to cancel the auto-away.