A group of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) activists took out a march to the local office of Shashi Tharoor, MP, here and placed a wreath and smeared used engine oil on the office premises and signboards on Monday in protest against his recent ‘Hindu Pakistan’ statement. The BJYM raised slogans demanding that Mr. Tharoor “go to Pakistan” in protest against his recent statement that if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was returned to power in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019, India too would become a Hindu theocratic State, which he likened to Pakistan. While Congress leaders in Delhi chose to caution Mr. Tharoor on making such statements, State leaders openly came out in his support. The statement had triggered a war of words between the Congress and the BJP, but Mr. Tharoor refused to budge from his stance.
Mr. Tharoor was in the city to attend some programmes. The BJYM demanded that Mr. Tharoor withdraw his statement, which, it said, would lead to communal polarisation in the country. It said Mr. Tharoor was trying to defame the Hindu and Muslim communities by his statement and demanded that he tender a public apology. BJYM State committee member Vishnu, district general secretaries Chandran, Satheesh, and Akhil led the protest.
Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala termed the BJYM acts fascist. Mr. Tharoor was an elected representative and was known all over the world. Condemning the incident, Mr. Chennithala also criticised the BJP leaders who justified the protest. Everyone enjoyed freedom of speech and opinion in a democracy.
KPCC president M.M. Hassan urged the people to protest against the incident and said that the Congress workers would give protection to Mr. Tharoor, if the BJP was trying to physically attack him.
