Hijab row: Shashi Tharoor vs Indian embassy in Kuwait over 'ban BJP' tweet

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor found himself mired in a fresh storm on February 18, after a tweet on the hijab row in Karnataka invited a sharp reaction from Indian government officials. Tharoor's retweet of a post with a letter kickstarted the latest controversy.

The letter was purportedly an appeal by a group of Kuwaiti parliamentarians to ban BJP members from entering the country, as a response to the hijab ban in Karnataka institutes. Commenting on the letter, Tharoor wrote, "Domestic actions have international repercussions. I hear from friends across the Gulf of their dismay at rising Islamophobia in India, and the PM’s unwillingness to condemn it, let alone act decisively against it. 'We like India.But don’t make it so hard for us to be your friends'."

Subsequently, the Indian embassy in Kuwait criticised Tharoor for endorsing the view of a "Pakistani agent". The embassy officials tweeted, "Sad to see an Hon’ble Member of Indian Parliament retweeting an anti-India tweet by a Pakistani agent who was recipient of a Pakistani Award ‘Ambassador of Peace’ for his anti-India activities. We should not encourage such anti-India elements."

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In response, Tharoor said that he does not endorse the individual in question, but is concerned about the sentiment that the person is conveying. The Congress leader said, "I don't endorse this individual, whom I'd never heard of, but am concerned about the sentiment he conveys, which is sadly shared by many who are friends of India. While accepting the embassy's view, I urge the Government of India not to give ammo to such anti-India elements by condoning misconduct here."

Tharoor represents Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram in the Lok Sabha. Kerala has a sizeable population of expatriates in the Gulf.