Once known for the remark “a girlfriend worth 50 crores,” today he stands as one of the most admired figures within the BJP.
#News Bureau May 17,2025
To expose Pakistan’s terrorism, the government is sending about 30 MPs to various countries of the world to present India’s side. For this, it sought advice from all parties. But the surprise came when the government announced the names of seven MPs on Saturday who will lead different parties. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is also among these seven names, although his name was not sent by the Congress. That is, he is the choice of the Modi government. After the Congress, the Samajwadi Party is the second largest opposition party in the Parliament, but the Modi government did not consider any of its leaders worthy of leading any party. The government is doing tremendous politics in the name of sending MPs abroad.
The Congress on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the government’s attitude, calling it “dishonest”. It said that it is “not going to change” the names of its four nominated MPs for the government delegation going abroad to explain India’s stand on terrorism flourishing in Pakistan. That is, indirectly, the four names are from the Congress.
This statement has come at a time when the government has released a list of seven MPs, which also includes Congress leader Shashi Tharoor. These MPs will represent India on international forums and will brief global leaders about Operation Sindhu there. Apart from Tharoor, the seven names include BJP’s Ravi Shankar Prasad, Baijayant Panda, JDU’s Sanjay Kumar Jha, DMK’s Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, NCP’s Supriya Sule and Shiv Sena Shinde faction’s Srikant Eknath Shinde.
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Congress general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh said that the party had given four names for the government’s proposed foreign delegation, but he was surprised to see Shashi Tharoor’s name in the official press release. Jairam Ramesh said, “We were asked for names. We expected that our given names would be included. But when we saw the PIB press release, we were shocked. What will happen now, I cannot say. Asking for four names, giving four names and then announcing someone else’s name is dishonesty on the part of the government.”
He said that it is possible that Union Minister Kiren Rijiju may have talked to Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge even after the government’s decision, and he said that he is ready to give Rijiju the benefit of the doubt.
4 names of Congress: Giving details of the letter sent by opposition leader Rahul Gandhi to Kiren Rijiju, Jairam Ramesh said, “On Tuesday afternoon at 12:30, Rahul ji wrote a letter to Kiren Rijiju: ‘Dear Mr. Kiren Rijiju, I am writing about the conversation I had with you and Kharge ji regarding the delegation going abroad. After consultation with Kharge ji, I am sending you four names: Anand Sharma, Gaurav Gogoi, Raja Barad and Naseer Hussain.
Jairam Ramesh stressed that even though all the people associated with the Congress belong to the party, there is a big difference between just being in the Congress and actually being of the Congress. He said that the party had given full support in every matter, but he was “shocked” when the names were announced.
BJP and Shashi Tharoor
BJP’s attitude towards Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has been strange from the beginning. The same Tharoor in whose name BJP is doing politics at this time, Narendra Modi had once voted for him. Tharoor’s wife Sunanda Pushkar was called a 50 crore girlfriend. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat at that time. This is from October 2012.
Shashi Tharoor and Congress relations
Currently, the relationship between Shashi Tharoor and the Congress is witnessing a state of tension. Tharoor, who is a senior Congress leader and MP from Thiruvananthapuram, has praised the policies and decisions of the Narendra Modi government on several occasions in recent months. These include India’s neutral policy in the Russia-Ukraine war, the Vaccine Maitri initiative, and foreign policy-related steps. His praise does not match the official stand of the Congress, due to which his position within the party is being questioned. Some Congress leaders, such as Udit Raj, questioned Tharoor’s comments and accused him of behaving like a BJP spokesperson. Apart from this, Congress’ Malayalam mouthpiece ‘Veeksham Daily’ also criticized Tharoor’s comments, which makes the rift in his relationship with the party clear.
Tharoor and BJP relations Relationship
An unusual closeness has been observed between Shashi Tharoor and BJP in recent times, highlighted by his statements praising the Modi government. For instance, Tharoor praised India’s Pakistan policy after the Pahalgam terror attack and ‘Operation Sindoor’, which the BJP used to respond to the Congress. Also, Tharoor praised the BJP during the inauguration of the Vizhinjam port.
