PMO Shares Shashi Tharoor’s Op-Ed, Fueling Buzz Over Possible Congress-BJP Crossover

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 23rd June: An opinion piece by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor received an unexpected endorsement on Monday after it was shared by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on X (formerly Twitter), reigniting speculation about a potential high-profile political shift.

The article, titled “Lessons from Operation Sindoor’s Global Outreach”, was published by The Hindu and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “energy, dynamism and willingness to engage” with global leaders. The PMO shared the link to the article with a neutral caption: “Lok Sabha MP and former Union Minister Dr Shashi Tharoor writes – Lessons from Operation Sindoor’s global outreach.”

While the post seemed procedural, it triggered intense chatter online and within political circles, especially amid longstanding speculation about Tharoor’s rapport with the Congress leadership and a possible defection to the BJP — claims he has repeatedly denied.

Adding fuel to the fire was Tharoor’s absence from the campaign trail in the recently concluded Nilambur Assembly bypoll in Kerala, which the Congress won. Party insiders, particularly in the Kerala unit, have expressed discontent over Tharoor’s repeated praise of Prime Minister Modi, with some calling his remarks “embarrassing” and “unnecessary.”

Tharoor’s controversial admiration for Modi isn’t new. While leading a cross-party delegation to five countries including the United States, Brazil, and Panama after the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, Tharoor had publicly commended the Modi government’s response to terrorism — including the 2016 surgical strikes — while on foreign soil. His remarks in Panama drew sharp rebukes from the Congress, which reminded him of similar military operations conducted under the UPA.

The appointment of Tharoor to head that delegation itself had drawn internal criticism, with some Congress members accusing him of acting as a “super spokesperson” for what they described as the BJP’s “publicity stunts.”

Despite the growing discomfort within the Congress, Tharoor has publicly maintained loyalty to the party. In an interview last week, the four-time MP from Thiruvananthapuram dismissed rumours of a switch, stating: “These are differences of opinion with only some elements of leadership. I have been loyal to the party and its ideology for 16 years.”

He further clarified that his participation in the cross-party delegation was in the interest of representing India, not party politics. “It was not about the BJP or the Congress. It was about India’s message to the world on terrorism,” he said.

Tharoor has reportedly met with senior Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, to discuss his political future, but no official statements have emerged from those conversations.

As the PMO’s signal boost of his op-ed continues to trend, many within political and media circles are watching Tharoor closely — either for reconciliation with the Congress or a dramatic realignment that could reshape opposition politics ahead of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections and beyond.