Congress removes Tharoor for Modi praise

The Congress on Monday removed MP and former Union minister Shashi Tharoor from its panel of spokespersons following complaints from party workers and leaders over his recent remarks in praise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi approved his removal as party spokesman “with immediate effect” following a recommendation by a disciplinary panel of the All India Congress Committee on a complaint from the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) that he was praising Modi.

Party spokesperson Shobha Oza clarified that the action did not come following revival of controversy over Tharoor’s wife Sunanda Pushkar’s death.

In a statement, Tharoor said he accepted the party president’s decision as “a loyal worker of the Congress” but regretted he was not given an opportunity to be heard before the decision was taken.

The decision to remove Tharoor as party spokesperson was announced by Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi, who explained, “The KPCC had submitted a complaint in this regard to the disciplinary committee.”

Tharoor said he fully recognised that it was the “prerogative” of his party to “alter” his responsibility.