Congress vs Tharoor: The Surgical Strike Debate

Tensions between Congress and its leader, Shashi Tharoor, escalated over his erroneous remark on surgical strikes against Pakistan being first conducted in 2016. While the party maintained Tharoor remained part of the Congress family, they corrected his claim with historical Congress-led UPA actions against terror threats.

Tharoor, amidst a multi-country diplomatic tour, addressed the criticism stating his comments focused on reprisals for recent terrorist attacks. He emphasized his remarks were not about past wars and criticized those distorting his views for political gain. He reiterated this stance with a post from Panama City.

Congress leaders like Randeep Surjewala attempted to diffuse tensions by reinstating party unity, despite the backlash from figures such as Pawan Khera, who highlighted contradictions in Tharoor's statements and called for a focus on historical accuracies rather than political bickering.

(With inputs from agencies.)