Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.
Credit: PTI photo
New Delhi: Congress Lok Sabha Deputy Leader Gaurav Gogoi telephoned senior MP Shashi Tharoor on the instructions of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to ask him to participate in the debate on Operation Sindoor but the Thiruvananthapuram MP declined, sources said on Monday.
“Maun vrat, maun vrat (vow of silence),” Tharoor told reporters in Parliament House when asked about participating in the 16-hour special discussion ‘Special Discussion on India’s Strong, Successful and Decisive Operation Sindoor in Response to the Terrorist Attack in Pahalgam’.
Earlier, there was speculation that Tharoor would speak during the debate as he headed a delegation that visited various countries to drum up support against Pakistan’s sponsorship of cross-border terrorism. Tharoor was present in Lok Sabha when the debate started and he sat through Gogoi’s speech.
Sources said Tharoor told Gogoi that he is disinclined to speak during the debate and that he would like to participate in The Indian Ports Bill that seeks to consolidate the law relating to ports, promote integrated port development, facilitate ease of doing business and ensure the optimum utilisation of India’s coastline. Adani-run Vizhinjam port is in his constituency.
Congress has issued a Whip to its Lok Sabha MPs asking them to be present in the House and “support the party stand” in the business of the House in the next three days ending Wednesday.
Tharoor’s stand on Operation Sindoor is in variance with the party and has vociferously supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the Congress was raising questions.
By asking Tharoor to speak on the issue, the Congress wanted to make the flamboyant MP toe the party line on Operation Sindoor and appear to give an impression that the party is not vindictive to Tharoor and is giving him the Parliamentary platform. If he was speaking during the debate, he would have to toe the party line.
Sources said the Congress presented a Hobson’s choice to Tharoor to impose the party line on Operation Sindoor. Or else expose himself to allegations of having toed the government's line for reasons extraneous to the 'national interest' refrain used by the senior MP in leading the delegation to US and other countries, they said.
Violation of party Whip could mean trouble, as an MP could even face expulsion from the House if the party presses for such an action. The party could also invoke Schedule 10 of the Constitution claiming that the MP has voluntarily given up party membership by toeing another party’s line.
Sources said it was on Rahul’s instructions that Gogoi transmitted the message to Tharoor. However, Tharoor appeared to choose the other route and indirectly telling the Congress leadership that he is not going to parrot the party line, as he has already taken a different course.
Tharoor has publicly praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Operation Sindoor and accepted chairmanship of one of the multi-party delegations sent by the government abroad, much to the chagrin of the Congress. It would have been difficult for him to attack Modi and his government.
Congress had given four names to be included in the delegations but the government had only accepted the recommendation for Anand Sharma while choosing Tharoor, Manish Tewari, Salman Khurshid and Amar Singh to be part of the teams.
At a meeting of senior Congress Working Committee members in Delhi, sources said Tharoor was told that he had crossed the “Lakshman Rekha” (red line). Among other remarks, Tharoor had claimed that India had not conducted surgical strikes in Pakistan before 2016.