- Congress MP Shashi Tharoor did not confirm if he would speak during Operation Sindoor discussion today
- Tharoor was present in Parliament ahead of the Monsoon session resumption when questioned by NDTV
- Congress sources said the MP opted out of the debate
Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor, who led arguably the most important outreach delegation following the ghastly Pahalgam terror attack, is not among the Congress lawmakers participating in the Lok Sabha's special discussion on Operation Sindoor. His absence from such an important debate has raised eyebrows, amid reports of a widening internal rift between the Congress party and the senior MP, who is known for his calm observations and tearing critique.
Congress sources, however, claimed the party had approached him to take part in the debate, but he declined. Mr Tharoor said he could not adhere to the party line, which was to attack the government over Op Sindoor, and conveyed to the party that he wouldn't contradict his stand that the operation was successful, they said.
After Mr Tharoor's assertion that he would speak only in support of Op Sindoor, the party decided not to include him in the debate, the sources said.
Earlier in the day, when an NDTV journalist tried to confirm with Mr Tharoor if he would speak in the parliament today, he evaded the question and walked away. Renuka Chowdhury, his party colleague who had just reached there and spoke to him, said that Mr Tharoor "is constitutionally empowered to speak anywhere. Who am I to give permission?"
The discussion on Op Sindoor begins today following an Opposition demand, months after Indian forces struck terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir as part of Op Sindoor in response to the April 22 Pahalgam attack.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, his deputy in the House, Gaurav Gogoi, and MPs, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Deepender Hooda, Parineeti Shinde, Shafi Parambil, Manickam Tagore, and Raja Barad from the Congress camp would take part in the 16-hour discussion.
Mr Tharoor, a former diplomat, led one of the seven all-party delegations of lawmakers that carried India's anti-terror message following the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor. His team visited the US among a total of five countries.
The 69-year-old had been at unease with the Congress since 2021, when he and a group of dissenting Congress leaders had questioned the Gandhis' leadership. The relationship worsened after a string of events, especially the global outreach initiative.
His inclusion in the Centre's outreach campaign was a major flashpoint in the rift that both sides have thus far refused to admit in public. The Congress, though, didn't hide its unease over Mr Tharoor being a part of the central initiative, and he was heavily criticised.
But he didn't back down and asserted, what he did was right for the country.
Mr Tharoor has also played down any friction within the party and pointed out that he has been loyal to the Congress for 16 years. He has denied any plans to switch to the BJP.
