Day after attack on office, Tharoor hits out at BJP

Congress leader and MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday reiterated his concerns on the “dangers” for India under the BJP.

Tharoor was speaking during a protest organised by the state’s Congress-led opposition United Democratic Front, against the BJP-led Central and CPM-led state governments.

“The Hindu Rashtra narrative that the BJP is endorsing is dangerous to India and will destabilise the country,” the MP said. Tharoor’s statement came a day after members of the BJP-affiliated Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) defaced his constituency office here. The BJYM protest was in response to the MP’s recent statement that a repeat win for the BJP-led coalition at the Centre could see the rise of a nation that undermines its minorities and the creation of a “Hindu Pakistan”.

“They are asking me to go to Pakistan. Who gave them the right to decide that since I’m not a Hindu like them, I can’t live here? Is a Taliban emerging in Hinduism?” he asked while addressing the protesters on Tuesday.

The state unit of the Congress has extended support to Tharoor. The BJP continued its agitation against the MP in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday. Five BJYM activists were arrested on Tuesday in connection with the attack on Tharoor’s office and released on bail.