Congress Leader Udit Raj Accuses Shashi Tharoor of Echoing BJP Rhetoric Amid Global Outreach Mission

Delhi: In a striking intra-party rebuke, senior Congress leader Udit Raj has publicly criticized fellow party MP Shashi Tharoor, branding him the "super spokesperson of the BJP" for repeatedly issuing remarks perceived as favorable to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the central government.

The comments came in the wake of Operation Sindoor, a diplomatic campaign launched by the Indian government to mobilize international support against cross-border terrorism. As part of this initiative, India dispatched several multi-party parliamentary delegations to global capitals. One such high-profile mission is being led by Shashi Tharoor himself, tasked with presenting India's "precise and calibrated" response to escalating terror threats.

Tharoor's delegation—comprising MPs from across the political spectrum, including the BJP, JMM, TDP, and Shiv Sena—has so far visited the United States, Guyana, and Panama. During these visits, the group has engaged with lawmakers, policy think tanks, media houses, and members of the Indian diaspora to project a unified national stance on terrorism and national security.

However, Udit Raj has slammed Tharoor for what he sees as disproportionately pro-government messaging. “What BJP leaders aren’t saying in praise of Prime Minister Modi, Shashi Tharoor is doing,” Raj said. He also criticized Tharoor for failing to acknowledge the national security accomplishments of previous Congress-led governments, arguing that the Modi administration has taken undue credit for the Indian Armed Forces' successes.

Sources within the Congress party told  that Tharoor’s recent remarks—particularly his assertion that India had "never crossed the Line of Control" prior to the 2016 Uri surgical strikes—have sparked internal discontent. Many within the party believe such statements downplay strategic military actions carried out during Congress's tenure.

Congress Initially Did Not Recommend Tharoor for Delegation Role

According to senior Congress insiders, Tharoor was not among the original four names proposed by the party when the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs requested nominations for the international delegations. The Congress list included former Union Minister Anand Sharma, Lok Sabha Deputy Leader Gaurav Gogoi, Rajya Sabha MP Dr. Syed Naseer Hussain, and Lok Sabha MP Raja Brar.

Despite this, the ministry selected Shashi Tharoor, bypassing the Congress’s recommendations. BJP spokesperson Amit Malviya later described the Congress's choices as "deeply questionable" in a social media post on X (formerly Twitter), a sentiment that may have influenced the final lineup.

Tharoor Denounces Pakistan’s Terror Networks in Panama

While in Panama, Tharoor delivered a sharp rebuke of Pakistan’s long-standing involvement in fostering terrorism against India. “What has changed in recent years is that terrorists now understand there will be a price to pay. Let there be no doubt about that,” he stated.

Tharoor also referenced the 2016 Uri surgical strike as a landmark moment, noting that India had never breached the Line of Control before that operation—not even during the Kargil War. He highlighted subsequent retaliatory strikes, including the 2019 Balakot air strikes following the Pulwama attack, framing them as signs of India’s hardened stance.

“This time, we have gone beyond both the Line of Control and the international border,” Tharoor emphasized. “We struck at the Punjabi heartland of Pakistan, targeting training camps and terror headquarters in nine locations.”

Despite these remarks aligning with the government's narrative, they appear to have triggered unease within the Congress ranks, with Udit Raj’s comments signaling deeper fault lines regarding the party’s positioning on national security and its role in cross-party diplomatic initiatives.