'Glad Was In Audience': Shashi Tharoor Praises PM Again, Risks Congress Fury

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor invited another spat with his party leadership Tuesday after he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, again. In a post on X the Thiruvananthapuram MP said he had been invited to a private event in Delhi, at which the Prime Minister spoke on "India's constructive impatience for development and pushed strongly for (the growth) of a post-colonial mindset".

The Prime Minister, he said, "emphasised that India is no longer just an 'emerging market' but an 'emerging model' for the world", which had taken note of its economic resilience in having survived global events like the pandemic and is navigating through the conflict in Ukraine.

"PM Modi said he had been accused of being in 'election mode' all the time… but he was really in an 'emotional mode' to redress the problems of the people," Tharoor said, recounting what the PM said in his speech, which focused on colonialism's impact on education in India.

Tharoor said a key part of the PM's speech was dedicated to "overturning Macaulay's 200-year legacy of 'slave mentality' (i.e., a colonial mindset)". The PM, he said, appealed for a 10-year national mission to restore pride in India's heritage, languages, and knowledge systems.

Attended PM @narendramodi's #RamnathGoenkaLecture at the invitation of @IndianExpress last night. He spoke of India's "constructive impatience" for development and strongly pushed for a post-colonial mindset.

The PM emphasized that India is no longer just an 'emerging market'… pic.twitter.com/97HwGgQ67N

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) November 18, 2025

"On the whole, the address served as an economic outlook and a cultural call to action, urging the nation to be restless for progress. Glad to have been in the audience…" Tharoor declared.

Visuals from the event showed Tharoor sitting amicably with BJP leader and former Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to his left. Former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad was to his right.

The PM was referring to Thomas Babington Macaulay, a 19th century British MP who came to India in 1834, and is credited with the introduction of the Western education system – which included making English the official language of instruction in all schools – in this country.

"In India's traditional education system, we were taught to take pride in our culture. Our education emphasised skill along with learning. That is why Macaulay decided to break the backbone of India's education system… and he succeeded," the Prime Minister said.

"Macaulay ensured that the British language and British thinking received greater recognition during that period, and India paid the price for it for centuries to come," he said, declaring the British politician "broke our self-confidence and filled us with a sense of inferiority."

Tharoor's praise for the Prime Minister's speech is unlikely to be received favourably by other Congress leaders, particularly since this is not the first time he has spoken glowingly of the PM.

Ties between the four-time MP and the Congress have deteriorated sharply over the past few months, specifically from the time he was chosen as one of the opposition faces in government delegations sent to friendly nations in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.

Mr Tharoor led the delegation to the United States and four other countries, and returned to India to be debriefed by a friendly Prime Minister, adding to whispers of a switch.

READ | Shashi Tharoor Praises PM's Terror Response, Gets Congress 'CC' Strike

And there was also tension over the Prime Minister's "energy, dynamism and willingness to engage (with other countries) post-Operation Sindoor"; that was mentioned in an article – which was shared on X by the Prime Minister's office – calling the PM a "prime asset" for India.

READ | Tharoor Calls PM "Prime Asset For India" In New Provocation For Congress

Tharoor's comments praising the Prime Minister's handling of that crisis provoked sharp comments from the Congress, leading to speculation of a seismic break-up and more talk of a jump to the Bharatiya Janata Party. Tharoor, however, made it clear that will not happen.

READ | "Not Leaping To Join BJP": Shashi Tharoor's Message Amid Speculation

In June he said, "It (praise for the Prime Minister) is not a sign of my leaping to join his party... as some people have, unfortunately, been implying. It is a statement of national unity..."

And when NDTV asked him how he would define his relationship with the Congress today, he pointed out he had been loyal to the party and its ideology for the last 16 years.

Even before that Shashi Tharoor and the Congress seemed uneasy with each other. Tharoor was part of the 'G-23' group of party leaders who expressed unhappiness with the Gandhi family's leadership style and demanded wholesale change. He even stood for the post of party chief.

Earlier this month Tharoor wrote an article critiquing dynasticism in Indian politics.

The article, 'Indian Politics Are a Family Business' focused on dynasty-led political parties in India, including the Congress, Samajwadi Party, DMK, Trinamool Congress, and the National Conference.