Praising Modi and expressing views that differ from party's official stance; Shashi Tharoor isolated in Congress

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Shashi Tharoor is increasingly being isolated within the Congress party for putting the party on the defensive by consistently praising Prime Minister Modi's actions and expressing views that differ from the official Congress stance during the ongoing India-Pakistan conflict.

While the Congress party praised former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s decisions during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, Tharoor stirred controversy by stating that the current situation cannot be compared with that of 1971. This divergent opinion became the centre of debate. Jairam Ramesh, the official party spokesperson, responded by saying that although Tharoor’s comments were his personal opinion, as a member of the Congress Working Committee, he should have reflected the party’s official position.

The remarks triggered widespread protests in Delhi. Although Congress leaders from Kerala did not publicly oppose Tharoor, they are of the opinion that his comments were unnecessary and ill-timed.

Meanwhile, there were reports that the party had issued a warning to Tharoor. However, Tharoor denied receiving any such reprimand from the Congress high command, stating that he only learned about the alleged warning through the media, and that no formal or verbal communication regarding any warning had been conveyed to him by the party leadership.

He further added that he doesn’t understand why only his statements become controversial. According to him, what happened in Delhi was a constructive discussion. He emphasised that he was speaking not as a party spokesperson, but as an Indian citizen, responding to a direct question. He also pointed out the inaccuracies in Donald Trump's statements. Tharoor revealed that Rahul Gandhi had personally called him. Regarding K. Sudhakaran’s dissatisfaction, Tharoor said he had no response and that the party leadership had made a decision which should now be followed.