Britain gave India civilisation, says American TV host Tucker Carlson; here’s how Shashi Tharoor reacted

Congress senior leader Shashi Tharoor lashed out on Tuesday at an American television host claiming that India has not built a single structure 'as beautiful as the Bombay train station the British colonialists built.' A conservative political commentator, Tucker Carlson, who hosts the nightly political talk show 'Tucker Carlson Tonight' on Fox News, compares the 'mess left behind by the US' in Afghanistan to the British colonial era.

Carlson claimed that the British left behind an entire civilisation in India and abolished the Sati Pratha, a regressive Hindu practice in which a widow sacrificed herself by sitting atop her deceased husband's funeral pyre, without acknowledging Raja Ram Mohan's efforts to abolish the practice.

In his recent tweet, Shashi Tharoor wrote, "I think Twitter ought to have an option for something to press when you can't respond without losing your cool." Adding that, he will have to settle for emojis that express rage for the time being.

The Congress leader has authored several books on the colonial era, including 'An Era of Darkness' and 'Inglorious Empire,' to highlight the British empire's excesses.

According to the Fox News anchor, the British took their 'colonial responsibility' seriously and not only took but also added. "For example, here's the train station that the English built in Bombay," Carlson says as an image of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus emerges on the screen.

'There's nothing like that in Washington DC, right now, much less in Kabul or Baghdad.' "Today, India is far more powerful than the United Kingdom, which once ruled it. And, after 75 years of independence, has that country produced a single building as beautiful as the British colonials' Bombay train station? No, it has not, sadly." 'Not a single one.'

"The British empire was more than just genocide," he added. "Except for the Dutch during the Boer War, the British did not commit genocide. The Magna Carta, Habeas Corpus, and free speech were all gifts from the British to the world. They contributed to the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade and the ritual murder of widows in India."

Thousands of Twitter users have demanded an apology from the new King, Charles III, for British atrocities in India, the country's colony for over 200 years, since Queen Elizabeth's death. Many people pointed out that the Queen's continued wearing of jewels looted during the British Raj in India and other countries demonstrated that she was never sorry for what her country did in its colonies. The United Kingdom has never apologised for its colonial past. In contrast, Carlson was pro-Britain. 

Netizens have slammed the anchor for his pro-British Raj comments.

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• British colonial era
• India
• Shashi Tharoor
• Tucker Carlson