- The Congress called PM Modi's Ramnath Goenka Lecture 'petty' and unworthy of praise
- Supriya Shrinate criticized PM Modi's focus on Congress and his stance on fair journalism
- This came after Shashi Tharoor praised PM Modi's speech as an economic outlook and cultural call to action
The Congress on Wednesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered a "petty speech" at the Ramnath Goenka Lecture and wondered how senior party leader Shashi Tharoor found any reason to praise it.
Congress leader Supriya Shrinate said the Prime Minister should have spoken on his "problem with fair journalism" and claimed he thinks of the opposition party "day and night". She was referring to PM Modi's criticisms of the opposition party in his speech on Monday evening.
Her remarks came a day after Tharoor said PM Modi's Ramnath Goenka Lecture served as both an economic outlook and a cultural call to action.
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Speaking to reporters, Shrinate said: "I did not find anything in the speech worth appreciating. I think the PM must answer a lot of things. He was attending an event organised by a newspaper. He should tell us what his problem is with fair journalism. He should have told us why he is not happy with those who show and speak truth...So, I didn't see any reason to appreciate him."
She added: "I don't know how he (Tharoor) found one... I found it to be a petty speech. He criticised the Congress there too. The PM thinks of Congress day and night. This is amazing."
In a post on X on Tuesday, Tharoor said he attended the Lecture at the invitation of the organising newspaper - The Indian Express.
"Attended PM Narendra Modi's Ramnath Goenka Lecture 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 Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram said on X.
"On the whole, the PM's address served as both an economic outlook and a cultural call to action, urging the nation to be restless for progress. Glad to have been in the audience despite battling a bad cold and cough!" he added.
At the sixth Ramnath Goenka Lecture, PM Modi spoke on the Bihar election result, saying it has sent a clear message to all state governments that their development policies will determine the future of their parties, whether they belong to "left, right or centre".
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He also took a dig at those calling him and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of being perpetually in "election mode" and said that it is being in "emotional mode" with commitment to development and people's sentiment 24x7 that wins elections for the BJP.
He also lashed out at the Congress, contending that forces supporting Naxalism and Maoist terrorism were losing ground in the country but gaining traction in the main opposition party.
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It is not for the first time that Tharoor has raised eyebrows in the Congress through his praise for the Prime Minister or the Centre.
Earlier, he said dynastic politics across the political spectrum poses a "grave threat" to Indian democracy and asserted that it is high time India traded "dynasty for meritocracy".
The BJP had latched on to Tharoor's remarks, calling it a "very insightful piece" on how Indian politics has become a family business.
