Even before the dust could settle on his 'maharaja' comments amid row over the movie Padmavati, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor waded into a fresh controversy on Sunday over a tweet while he alluded to the surname of Haryana girl Manushi Chhillar who won Miss World crown this week after 17 years since Priyanka Chopra had won it last in 2000.
Tharoor, while mocking the government's demonetisation decision, referred to Chhillar's achievement saying, "What a mistake to demonetise our currency! BJP should have realised that Indian cash dominates the globe: look, even our Chhillar has become Miss World!" However, Tharoor was quick to apologise after being slammed on social media.
His tweet read: "Guess the pun IS the lowest form of humour, & the bilingual pun lower still! Apologies to the many who seem to have been righteously offended by a light-hearted tweet today. Certainly no offence was meant to a bright young girl whose answer i've separately praised. Please: Chill! (sic)."
In Hindi, the word chillar means (loose change).
The National Commission of Women (NCW) said it will summon the Congress leader for his 'derogatory and degrading' tweet on newly-crowned Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar.
A series of tweets by NCW read, "NCW condemn the tweet of @INCIndia leader @ShashiTharoor. He degraded the achievement of daughter of #haryana and #India who got glory to the country. Will he call his own daughter chillar? He must apologize immediately. NCWIndia will summon Shashi Tharoor to commission on his derogatory tweet."
Bharatiya Janata Party also accused Tharoor of "demeaning" a Haryana subname.
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra tweeted, "Is it real tweet of Sh Tharoor? This is ridiculing the great achievement of Ms Chhillar! Repeat of "Cattle Class" comment? Should apologise demeaning a Haryana Surname!"
Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) Chairman Anupam Kher called Tharoor a "fool" and asked why his standard had gone so low.
"Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something." Best wishes on #InternationalMensDay.:)," Kher further tweeted.
One twitterati reminded Tharoor of the difference between Hindi word chillar and Chillar, the surname of the Haryana girl.
This is not the first time that Tharoor has got into a Twitter controversy.
The 'cattle class" remark was made by Tharoor way back in 2009, when he had tweeted in a reply that he would travel "cattle class" in solidarity with all our "holy cows." As it sparked off a political storm and widespread outrage on social media, Congress disapproved the remarks from party podium. Tharoor had later tweeted an apology.
The two-term MP from Thiruvananthapuram has served as Union Minister and was also under Secretary General of the United Nations for Communications and Public Information.
At the height of the JNU row in 2016, he said said that Bhagat Singh was a young man who had great passion for motherland, Kanhaiya has the same. Congress was quick to distance itself then.
Addressing a literary event in Mumbai this week, Tharoor said, "Every single one of these so-called valorous maharajas, who today are after a Mumbai filmmaker because their honour is at stake, they were less concerned about their honour when the British were trampling all over it and they scurried to accommodate themselves."
Not only the Rajput groups were up in arms over his remarks but even Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia, himself a Maharaja, reacted sharply saying he thinks that Tharoor should "study history".
Tharoor later said said he did not wish to offend the Rajput community.
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