Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s remarks lauding PM Modi’s Operation Sindoor and surgical strikes have sparked outrage within his party, with leaders accusing him of undermining Congress’s legacy. As Tharoor leads a high-profile diplomatic mission, BJP leaders like Kiren Rijiju rally to his defense, amplifying tensions and raising questions about whether he could cross over to the BJP and take on a role as India’s foreign minister.
BY Navin Upadhyay
New Delhi, May 30, 2025 — Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s leadership of the Operation Sindoor diplomatic delegation to the US and Latin America has ignited a political firestorm, intensifying his rift with the Congress high command and fueling speculation about a dramatic career shift. His praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s counter-terrorism policies has drawn sharp rebukes from Congress leaders like Udit Raj, Jairam Ramesh, and Randeep Surjewala, while BJP leaders, including Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, have rallied to his defense. This unexpected alignment has sparked whispers in New Delhi’s political circles: could Tharoor, a former UN diplomat with global stature, be poised to replace S. Jaishankar as India’s External Affairs Minister?
The Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025, which claimed 26 lives, prompted India to launch Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoJK). To garner global support for India’s zero-tolerance stance on terrorism, the Modi government sent seven all-party delegations to 33 countries, including UN Security Council members. Tharoor, chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, was chosen to lead a high-profile delegation to the United States, Guyana, Panama, Brazil, and Colombia, despite Congress nominating other leaders like Anand Sharma, Gaurav Gogoi, Syed Naseer Hussain, and Raja Warring.
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Tharoor’s delegation, including MPs Shambhavi Chaudhary (LJP), Sarfaraz Ahmed (JMM), G.M. Harish Balayogi (TDP), Tejasvi Surya (BJP), and former Ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu, began its tour in New York on May 25. Visiting the 9/11 Memorial to emphasize solidarity with global victims of terrorism, Tharoor presented evidence of Pakistan’s complicity in the Pahalgam attack during meetings with Panamanian officials, including photos of Pakistan Army personnel at terrorists’ funerals. His resolute statement, “We will not be silenced by terrorism,” underscored India’s firm stance, but it was his praise for Modi’s leadership that triggered a political maelstrom.
Tharoor’s Remarks Spark Congress Backlash
In Panama, Tharoor’s statements lauding Modi’s counter-terrorism approach—particularly his claim that “for the first time, India breached the Line of Control to conduct a surgical strike” and his echo of Modi’s emotive justification for Operation Sindoor—ignited fury within Congress. He referenced Modi’s statement that the operation was necessary because “these terrorists came and wiped the sindoor off the foreheads of 26 women,” a framing Congress leaders saw as crediting the BJP with pioneering cross-border strikes.
Congress leader Udit Raj accused Tharoor of undermining the party’s legacy, sarcastically suggesting he be named the “super spokesperson of the BJP—or even India’s foreign minister.” Raj cited surgical strikes under Congress-led UPA governments, including actions during the 1965 war, and accused Tharoor of “denigrating the golden history of Congress.” Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera amplified the criticism on X, with Khera sharing excerpts from Tharoor’s book, The Paradoxical Prime Minister, which had previously criticized Modi for politicizing the 2016 surgical strikes. Randeep Surjewala, attempting to quell the controversy, affirmed Tharoor’s place in the “Congress family” but called his remarks “factually incorrect,” noting similar operations under former PM Manmohan Singh.
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Tharoor responded defiantly on X on May 29, dismissing critics as “zealots” and “trolls” and clarifying that his remarks referred only to recent retaliatory strikes. “I was clearly and explicitly speaking only about reprisals for terrorist attacks… Critics are welcome to distort my words, but I genuinely have better things to do,” he wrote, citing his diplomatic engagements in Brazil and Colombia.
BJP’s Support Fuels Speculation of a Crossover
In a surprising twist, BJP leaders like Kiren Rijiju and Shehzad Poonawalla defended Tharoor, accusing Congress of targeting him for prioritizing “national interest” over party loyalty. Rijiju questioned, “Should Indian MPs go to foreign nations and speak against India and its Prime Minister?” while Poonawalla claimed Tharoor was being attacked “at the behest of Rahul Gandhi” for putting “India first, not the Gandhi family.” This rare BJP endorsement has fueled speculation that Tharoor, with his urbane image and international stature, could be a prime candidate for a high-profile role in the Modi government—potentially even replacing S. Jaishankar as External Affairs Minister.
Jaishankar, a seasoned diplomat and architect of India’s foreign policy under Modi, has been a cornerstone of the BJP’s global outreach. However, some political analysts suggest that Tharoor’s global recognition, multilingual eloquence, and appeal to urban and liberal voters could make him an attractive choice for the BJP to broaden its base. Posts on X reflect this buzz, with one user stating, “Tharoor as EAM would give BJP a sophisticated face on the world stage, while sticking it to Congress.” Others speculate that Tharoor’s inclusion in the Operation Sindoor delegation was a strategic move by the BJP to test his alignment with their agenda.
Congress’s Dilemma and Tharoor’s Precarious Position
Tharoor’s strained ties with Congress are not new. His 2022 bid for Congress presidency against Mallikarjun Kharge, seen as a challenge to the Gandhi family’s influence, had already created friction. His praise for Modi’s foreign policy, calls for a “less obstructionist” opposition, and support for some BJP-led reforms have positioned him as a maverick, appealing to urban voters but alienating party loyalists. Jairam Ramesh’s cryptic remark, “Congress mein rehne mein aur saath rehne mein antar hai” (there’s a difference between being in Congress and standing with it), underscores the party’s unease, while Kharge’s dismissal of Operation Sindoor as a “chut-put yudh” (sporadic skirmish) highlights the ideological gap with Tharoor.
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The BJP has seized on Congress’s internal discord, accusing the party of echoing Pakistan’s rhetoric by downplaying Operation Sindoor. Meanwhile, Tharoor’s defiance and the BJP’s public support have intensified speculation about his future. Could he defect to the BJP and assume a role like External Affairs Minister? While Tharoor remains a Congress MP, the party faces a dilemma: disciplining him risks alienating his urban, liberal base, but tolerating his divergence undermines party unity. Udit Raj hinted that any decision on Tharoor’s potential suspension rests with the Congress Working Committee and leaders like Rahul Gandhi.
As Tharoor continues his diplomatic mission in Brazil and Colombia, his remarks and Congress’s reaction have exposed a deep rift within the party of Nehru and Gandhi. The speculation about him replacing Jaishankar hinges on several factors: his ability to navigate Congress’s internal politics, the BJP’s willingness to embrace a high-profile defector, and Jaishankar’s own standing within the Modi government. For now, Tharoor’s global stage presence and the BJP’s unexpected backing have positioned him as a wildcard in Indian politics, with the potential to reshape the country’s diplomatic and political landscape. As one X user put it, “Tharoor as EAM? Congress’s loss could be India’s gain.”
