
Shashi Tharoor Posts Cryptic Message After Kharge’s ‘Country First’ Jibe Over Modi Praise
Shashi Tharoor shared a cryptic post on X after Kharge’s remarks: “Don’t ask permission to fly. The wings are yours and the sky belongs to no one.”
The ongoing rift between the Congress party and Shashi Tharoor seems to have intensified after the MP praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a recent article. In his first response to the controversy, Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge stated that for the party, “it is country first”, contrasting it with the view that “for some” individuals, “Modi first and then the country comes.”
A cryptic post on Shashi Tharoor’s X account after Mallikarjun Kharge’s remarks later read, “Don’t ask permission to fly.”
Kharge made these remarks at a press conference in the national capital while marking the anniversary of the Emergency period imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from 1975 to 1977. He also responded to the reactions surrounding Tharoor’s article published in The Hindu, where the Congress MP described Modi’s “energy, dynamism and willingness to engage” as a “prime asset” for India on the global stage and said it deserved “greater backing.”
Commenting on Tharoor’s writing, Kharge said, “Mr Tharoor is very fluent in English. I can’t read English well. His language is very good. That’s why we have made him a Congress Working Committee member.”
Referring to the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians, Kharge said the Opposition stood united in its support for the armed forces. “We said the country comes first, party later. Some people feel ‘Modi first, country later’. What can we do?” he said.
Tharoor’s article has caused friction within the party, with the Congress distancing itself from his remarks on Tuesday. The main Opposition party has been critical of the government’s handling of recent events following the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir and is said to be displeased with Tharoor for not aligning with its official stance.
What did Tharoor say?
On Wednesday, Shashi Tharoor posted a cryptic message on X shortly after party president Mallikarjun Kharge’s press conference remarks. The post read, “Don’t ask permission to fly. The wings are yours and the sky belongs to no one.”
A day earlier, speaking at an event in Moscow, Tharoor clarified that his recent article on Operation Sindoor’s global outreach was not an indication of him switching sides. He said it was not about “leaping to join” Prime Minister Modi’s party but rather a statement of “national unity, interest and standing up for India.”
In the article published in The Hindu on Monday, Tharoor had written that Modi’s “energy, dynamism and willingness to engage” remained a “prime asset” for India on the international stage and that it “deserved greater backing.”
His comments were viewed as potentially causing friction with the Congress leadership and possibly widening internal differences within the party.
In the same article, Tharoor described the diplomatic outreach following Operation Sindoor as a moment of “national resolve and effective communication.”
The article was later shared on X by the Prime Minister’s Office.
Tharoor’s praise came at a time when the Congress has been vocal in its criticism of the BJP government’s foreign policy, accusing it of undermining India’s diplomacy and leaving the country “isolated” on the global stage.
Amid speculation over a potential political shift, Tharoor reiterated on Tuesday that his praise for the Prime Minister was not a sign of “leaping to join” the BJP, but rather a reflection of “national unity, national interest and standing up for India.”