DNA Edit: Sullying India’s image - Tharoor’s ploy to score brownie points backfired

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor is in the line of fire once again for trying to polarise India on religious lines. Drawing sharp criticisms for his irresponsible remark on Hindu-Pakistan, the MP from Thiruvananthapuram is left to fend for himself since his party has strategically distanced itself fearing the backlash it would generate.

Tharoor’s utterances are timed, keeping the 2019 elections in mind. He wants to spread fear and animosity between communities and vitiate the atmosphere. Tharoor and his ilk make a mockery of the Constitution with their half-baked ideas of secularism.

Forget being equidistant from all faiths, the Congress has distorted the European import to appease minorities for vote-bank politics by giving them a false sense of security. In reality, it had done precious little for Muslims, in terms of education, healthcare, and employment opportunities. Their lip-service to the triple talaq cause was more than evident in the recent past.

One has to understand that by making such irresponsible remarks about the BJP, Tharoor has, in fact, denigrated India and the principles that form the bedrock of its ancient civilisation. His understanding of politics and sphere of influence is limited to Lutyens’ Delhi and an elite circle that is far removed from ground realities. Neither the BJP nor the RSS has any intention of turning India into a Hindu Pakistan.

Unlike India, the day Pakistan tore itself away, religion became its founding principle, and India-baiting its raison d’être. Pakistan was doomed from the start, and after a few years of its existence, rapidly deteriorated to become a failed state where democracy turned into a puppet show of its Army.

In contrast, despite being a nation with Hindus as the overwhelming majority, minorities in India continue to enjoy a freedom that no Islamic country has accorded. The BJP stands for this inclusiveness and opposes any form of discrimination.

Tharoor was out to gain some cheap brownie points, and it shows that like his cattle-class remark, this time, too, he had to face the music. He can put up a brave front by refusing to apologise for his callous, irresponsible statements, but that will only make matters worse for him.

People like Tharoor aren’t liberals, but they never pass up an opportunity to project themselves as champions of liberal causes. It has become fashionable for a section to accuse the BJP of sowing hatred in this country. Tharoor went to the extent of saying that if the BJP returned to power, it would rewrite the Constitution to make India a Hindu-state. Nothing could be farther from the truth. It merely shows his unhealthy disregard for political adversaries, and his lack of confidence in the Hindu majority. Perhaps, a drubbing at the hustings will chastise him. That way, he will know that it’s best not to tilt at the windmills, a la Don Quixote. The repercussions will be more severe than what the ingenious nobleman had faced. For now, Tharoor should practise bridling his tongue so that it doesn’t dart off to cause him embarrassment.