'Never violated party line': Shashi Tharoor on Operation Sindoor row

Shashi Tharoor rejected claims of defying the Congress party line, stating he has never violated its parliamentary positions. He clarified the only public disagreement was his unapologetic stand on a kinetic response for the Pahalgam terror attack.

'Never Violated Party Line'

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Saturday rejected any claim of going against the party line on any issue, saying that he has "at no stage violated any of the Congress' positions in Parliament."

He said that there has been only one instance of "public disagreement on principle," which occurred after the Pahalgam terror attack and the response with Operation Sindoor, for which he remains unapologetic.

Unapologetic Stance on Operation Sindoor

"After the terror attack, which killed 26 people, the Congress leader had said that the act "cannot go unpunished, there has to be a kinetic response. I have at no stage violated any of the Congress' positions in Parliament; the only issue on which there has been public disagreement on principle is about Operation Sindoor, where I did take a very strong stand, and I remain unapologetic about that," Tharoor said.

Speculation of Rift with Party Leadership

Tharoor's comments come on the backdrop of speculation over him being "upset" for being ignored by party leaders, particularly by Rahul Gandhi, at a party event in Kochi on January 19. Tharoor had attended the 'mahapanchayat' party event, where Rahul Gandhi was present too. However, as Gandhi entered the stage, along with KC Venugopal, multiple party leaders were greeted directly; however, a direct greeting to Tharoor was not given.

While detailing his stance, which had led to public disagreements with other party leaders, Tharoor added, "After Pahalgam happened, I myself, as an observer and commentator, I had written a column in the Indian Express, which I think I gave the title 'After Pahalgam', they gave it a title 'Hit Hard, Hit Smart'. I said in that article - this cannot go unpunished; there has to be a kinetic response."

AICC Meet Absence and Party's Response

Following the Kochi event, it was reported that Tharoor had skipped an All India Congress Committee (AICC) meet due to his prior engagement at the Kerala Literature Fest. However, Tharoor reportedly did attend the Prime Minister's event in Thiruvananthapuram, where PM Modi inaugurated multiple Bharat trains.

The (AICC) meeting was attended by multiple party leaders, including party president Mallikarjun Kharge, party General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal, Rahul Gandhi, Jairam Ramesh, Deepa Dasmunshi, Meira Kumar and others in Delhi.

Congress leaders have refuted any claim of anger between the leadership and Tharoor, saying that he had informed them about his commitments earlier. "He spoke to the leaders about that, and I guess the leaders have given him permission to be there. This is not about him skipping the meeting. It is an important literary festival in Kerala that he attends every year. This is about our pathway ahead," said party leader Shafi Parambil.

"It is also very important for the party and for us, so he is releasing that (his book), that is why he sent us a message. Party is his priority, he was just in an event with Rahul," said Deepa Dasmunshi, AICC General Secretary. When asked if Tharoor is 'angry' with the leadership, she added, "No, no, nothing like that. Tharoor is very happy with the Congress party and the central leadership; there is no difference of opinion on this."

Past Criticism Over Delegation

Tharoor had also been part of the multi-party delegation on Operation Sindoor, which went to different countries to put forward India's stance following the Pahalgam terror attack. At that time, Tharoor had been criticised by his party leaders for the delegation, given that other prominent leaders, like Rahul Gandhi, Jairam Ramesh, Kharge, and others, had not been invited to be part of it.

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