Shashi Tharoor says 'neutral post on PM's speech' misread as 'praise', calls for state-Centre cooperation
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor argued that politics should rise above rigid ideological positions and that cooperation with the Centre is often necessary to achieve real outcomes.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has clarified his stance on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address at the sixth Ramnath Goenka Lecture, saying that even a “neutral summary” he posted was wrongly portrayed as praise. Tharoor argued that politics should rise above rigid ideological positions and that cooperation with the Centre is often necessary to achieve real outcomes.
This comes as a week earlier, Tharoor had posted key points from the Prime Minister’s speech at the event organised by The Indian Express. He mentioned that he attended despite battling a heavy cold and wrote that the address offered not just an economic perspective but also a cultural message encouraging India to stay “impatient for progress.”
He highlighted the PM’s emphasis on India’s “constructive impatience” for development and his push for a post-colonial mindset. Speaking at a recent event, Tharoor said that people must be more open to cooperating across ideological boundaries.
He said, “Our problem right now is that our politics seems to demand everybody has to be such a purist ideologically that they will not see any merit on the other side, they will not talk to anybody on the other side.” Commenting on the criticism he received from within his party, he said, “Even a neutral post by me on a speech by the Prime Minister has been attacked as praising the Prime Minister. I didn’t say a single word of praise, I just described the speech.”
Cooperation with centre essential, says Tharoor
Tharoor argued that ideological rigidity can hinder development. He asked how a state could get things done without engaging with the Centre.“You really have to say it is in our interest to cooperate in the interest of our people… So yes, I don’t disagree with the ruling party, but they are the ruling party, they have a mandate from the nation. I will work with them,” he said.
He added that if the Centre launches a scheme with certain conditions, he would still discuss it and seek ways to implement it because “my people in my state need the money.” Citing a recent example from Kerala where a central scheme was rejected, Tharoor said, “There are schools… whose roofs are leaking… and we are now acting ideologically pure and refusing the money from the Centre. That’s crazy. It’s taxpayers’ money. It’s our money.”
Strong reactions from within Congress
Tharoor’s remarks drew sharp criticism from several Congress leaders. Party leader Sandeep Dikshit questioned why Tharoor remained in Congress if he found the BJP or the Prime Minister’s strategies superior, calling on him to explain himself or be labelled a “hypocrite.”
Supriya Shrinate also criticised Tharoor’s reaction to the PM’s speech, saying she did not find anything “praiseworthy” in it and even considered the speech “petty.”