Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Friday praised US President Donald Trump’s meeting with newly elected New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani at the White House and called it a sign of democratic maturity despite the bitter exchanges between the two during the election campaign.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP shared a video of the two American leaders in a latest social media post and said he wants to see similar levels of cooperation in India.
Sharing the post, Tharoor posted on X, “This is how democracy should work. Fight passionately for your point of view in elections, with no rhetorical holds barred. But once it’s over, & the people have spoken, learn to cooperate with each other in the common interests of the nation you are both pledged to serve. I would love to see more of this in India – and am trying to do my part (sic).”
In the clip, a reporter is heard asking Mamdani whether he still considers Trump a “fascist.” Before Mamdani could reply, Trump interjected, saying he didn’t mind being called one, an exchange that quickly went viral.
BJP Praises Tharoor
The BJP seized on Tharoor’s remarks, using them to take a swipe at the Congress leadership. Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla claimed the post was a “cryptic reminder” for Congress leaders to put the country above the Gandhi family.
“Once again, Dr Tharoor has chosen to remind Congress that they should put national interests above family interests and should serve and behave democratically rather than behave like sore losers,” Poonawalla said in a video statement.
He argued that the Congress routinely cries foul after electoral defeats and suggested Tharoor was signalling that rival parties must come together in the national interest after polls conclude.
Asking whether Rahul Gandhi would “get the message,” Poonawalla also suggested the party might issue “another fatwa” against Tharoor for his comments.
“Perhaps this is a real cryptic message to Congress that it must get out of its emergency mindset and behave like a mature opposition. But will Rahul Gandhi get the message? No, he might in fact get another fatwa issued against Dr Tharoor,” he added.
Tharoor’s Friction in Congress
Tharoor’s relationship with the Congress high command has appeared increasingly strained in recent months. He has often courted criticism within the party for remarks viewed as too generous toward BJP leaders.
Earlier this week, he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Ramnath Goenka lecture, prompting a sharp reaction from a Congress colleague who questioned why he remained in the party if he believed BJP strategies were superior.
The friction has been building. Recently, Tharoor wrote an article arguing that dynastic politics hampers meritocracy, citing the Gandhi–Nehru family as an example without mentioning any BJP parallels, directly echoing one of the BJP’s core accusations against the Congress.
The article only added to the discomfort within the party’s ranks. As Tharoor continues to position himself as an independent voice within the Congress, each of his statements appears to be drawing sharper scrutiny—both from his rivals and from his own colleagues.
