Pawan Khera's repost of Udit Raj's attack on Tharoor hints at strategic intra-party messaging

New Delhi, May 28 (IANS) The Congress appears to be navigating turbulent waters once again, as internal fissures surface following a strongly worded social media post by party leader Udit Raj.

In a post on X, Raj launched a blistering attack on senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, slamming him for remarks made during a diplomatic engagement in Panama, where the Thiruvananthapuram MP was perceived to have lauded the Modi government’s cross-border military actions.

Raj sarcastically suggested that if it were within his power, he would have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to appoint Tharoor as the BJP’s chief spokesperson, or even as foreign minister, given the tone of his comments abroad.

Raj accused Tharoor of undermining the Congress party’s historical contributions by making statements that seemed to ignore the strategic and military achievements India accomplished under previous Congress-led governments.

He said that during the 1965 and 1971 wars, India took decisive military actions that reshaped the subcontinent, particularly pointing to the creation of Bangladesh in 1971 because of India’s intervention.

He also highlighted that during the tenure of the UPA government, India conducted multiple surgical strikes, though these were not publicly celebrated or politicised in the manner seen in recent years.

Raj flayed Tharoor for “failing to acknowledge” these past actions and, in doing so, accused him of being unfaithful to a party that has played a central role in his political career.

The post has stirred political circles not merely because of its content, but more so due to its endorsement—real or perceived—by Pawan Khera, Chairman of the Congress’s Media and Publicity Department and a member of the Congress Working Committee.

Khera’s decision to repost Udit Raj’s critique has fuelled speculation about factionalism within the party.

Observers interpret Khera’s action as a tacit approval of Raj’s public condemnation of Tharoor, a prominent face in the Congress’s international outreach.

Tharoor is currently leading a multi-party delegation to five nations post-Operation Sindoor, and his Panama remarks, construed as praise for the Modi government’s military decisiveness, have sparked this intra-party blowback.

What adds another layer to the unfolding drama is Udit Raj’s own political identity—as a Dalit leader, his positioning is seen by some analysts as strategically chosen to lend caste-based political insulation to the critique.

The move is speculated to be aimed at pre-emptively neutralising any criticism from Tharoor’s defenders or the BJP by invoking the optics of marginal representation.

The unfolding controversy reveals a deeper ideological and strategic churn within the Congress. Whether this incident will lead to an open confrontation or be managed internally remains to be seen.

--IANS

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