S Tharoor Not On Op Sindoor Debate List, Congress Sources Say He Declined

Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor, who led arguably the most important outreach delegation following the ghastly Pahalgam terror attack, is not among the Congress lawmakers participating in the Lok Sabha's special discussion on Operation Sindoor.

His absence from such an important debate has raised eyebrows, amid reports of a widening internal rift between the Congress party and the senior MP, who is known for his calm observations and tearing critique. 

Congress sources, however, claimed the party had approached him to take part in the debate, but he declined.

Earlier in the day, when an NDTV journalist tried to confirm with Mr Tharoor if he would speak in the parliament today, he evaded the question and walked away. Renuka Chowdhury, his party colleague who had just reached there and spoke to him, said that Mr Tharoor "is constitutionally empowered to speak anywhere. Who am I to give permission?"

The discussion on Op Sindoor begins today following an Opposition demand, months after Indian forces struck terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir as part of Op Sindoor in response to the April 22 Pahalgam attack.

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, his deputy in the House, Gaurav Gogoi, and MPs, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Deepender Hooda, Parineeti Shinde, Shafi Parambil, Manickam Tagore, and Raja Barad from the Congress camp would take part in the 16-hour discussion.

Mr Tharoor, a former diplomat, led one of the seven all-party delegations of lawmakers that carried India's anti-terror message following the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor. His team visited the US among a total of five countries.

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