Kolkata: In an act that can increase his tension with the party, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has called for more support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “energy, dynamism and willingness to engage (with other countries)”. Also, he called PM Modi “India’s prime asset on the global stage”.
Notably, Tharoor was a prominent face of the Centre’s delegation to foreign countries regarding anti-terrorism diplomatic outreach to the US, Brazil, and three other nations after Operation Sindoor. In an article published in The Hindu, Tharoor wrote the global outreach where seven cross-party MP delegations visited 32 countries was “a moment of national resolve and effective communication (and) affirmed that India, when united, can project its voice with clarity and conviction.” He wrote, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s energy, dynamism and willingness to engage remains a prime asset for India on the global stage, but deserves greater backing.”
According to Tharoor, the delegation explained the Indian Armed Forces’ “calibrated and measured” retaliation to the Pahalgam terror attack and Pakistan’s link to terrorism. He referred to the crossover of Indian and Pakistani delegations in the US and wrote, “Even as a Pakistani delegation was simultaneously present, we found US representatives… echoing our concerns and urging decisive action against terror groups… our arguments, grounded in facts and consistent advocacy, were reinforcing the legitimacy of India’s position.”
He further wrote, “We consistently highlighted the severity of the threat from across our borders, aiming to build global consensus to hold perpetrators accountable.” Notably, in recent times, the friction between Tharoor and Congress has increased, with the grand-old party omitting his name from the list of candidates given to the Centre for the delegations. However, the government ignored Congress’ suggestion and selected Tharoor, which infuriated senior Congress leaders who called him a ‘super spokesperson’ for the BJP’s ‘publicity stunts’ and accused him of flattering PM Modi.
Recently, Tharoor sharply condemned US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Pakistan’s army chief, General Asim Munir. It ignited debate regarding US-Pakistan relations and the ongoing issue of terrorism. Tharoor’s criticism centred on the perceived disregard for Pakistan’s history of harbouring terrorists, a history he forcefully linked to the 9/11 attacks, and he asked the rhetorical question, “Forgotten Osama already?”, reminding the US of how devastating terrorism can be.
