A big question mark is on whether Shashi Tharoor, who had led the delegation to the US among other countries, will be picked as speaker by the Congress, as the seasoned Lok Sabha member's enthusiastic endorsement of the government's action following the terror attack has soured his ties with his party.
The Congress will launch a nationwide campaign against the repeal of the United Progressive Alliance-era rural employment legislation Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) on January 5, similar to the pushback against the three farm laws which eventually forced the Narendra Modi government to rollback its decision, party president Mallikarjun Kharge said.
Kerala health minister Veena George on Tuesday said that a total of 80 cases and 21 deaths due to amoebic meningoencephalitis had been recorded in the state.
Officials said the government-to-government engagement between the two countries on all other issues remains normal, but conceded rough spots over trade that need ironing out.
'I would like to see Kharge include Shashi in the Congress Working Committee.' 'The other alternative is that the Congress will marginalise him.'
His remarks came a day after Kharge said he told Tharoor that it would be better to have a consensus candidate but the Lok Sabha MP insisted on a contest for the "sake of democracy".
"Word of the day! Definition of *snollygoster* US dialect: a shrewd, unprincipled politician. First Known Use: 1845. Most recent use: 26/7/17," Tharoor had tweeted in 2017.
'I've been missing @imVkohli a few times during this series, but never as much as in this Test match.'
Tharoor said that every 'Ram bhakt' was not a Bharatiya Janata party supporter and he saw no reason why he or the grand old party should relinquish Lord Ram to the saffron party.
The opposition party's attack came after Shashi Tharoor, not part of the four leaders nominated by the Congress, was named as the head of a delegation to key partner countries to convey India's message of zero tolerance against terrorism following Operation Sindoor.
The high court said the defence, if any, needs to be considered by the trial court on the basis of evidence.
Tagging the Congress' tweet, Tharoor said, 'Indeed! We should also acknowledge all those who revived and popularised yoga, including our government, @PMOIndia & @MEAIndia, for internationalising International Yoga Day through the @UN.'
Jaishankar said that the West has had a "bad habit" for a long time, of commenting on others, and it thinks it has a "God-given right" to speak about the internal matters of other countries.
The lawmakers also hailed the strong strategic partnership between India and the US during a meeting with an all-party delegation led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who briefed them on the cross-border terrorism faced by India and the country's strong and resolute stance in the fight against terror.
Everyone knows who will win the election to succed Sonia Gandhi as Congress president. But who would YOU prefer?
The government will send seven all-party delegations to key partner countries, including members of the United Nations Security Council, later this month to convey India's message of zero tolerance against terrorism following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor.
The 68-year-old former diplomat has been a vocal advocate of Samson's inclusion in the national set-up and had criticised his omission from the ODI World Cup squad last year.
Tharoor later apologised for offending 'some people' and said the 'whole selfie thing' was done at the women MPs' initiative in 'great good humour and it was they who asked me to tweet it in the same spirit'.
'Since the party is at a stage when things are very bad, this is the best time to experiment.'
'The Congress submitted four names to the government as the people who should accompany the delegation.' 'I don't know what happened to those names.' 'When I was approached, I told them to speak to my party.' 'I have no further involvement with this delegation.'
Speaking to media after meeting party functionaries at Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee office in Mumbai, the former diplomat also said his aim was to make Congress stronger before the 2024 polls.
Tharoor also raised questions regarding the judgment of the Surat court, which convicted and sentenced Gandhi.
The BJP has criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his explanation of decentralisation using a car and motorcycle engine analogy at a university in Colombia.
Tharoor's dig came a day after the Animal Welfare Board of India said it has withdrawn the appeal to celebrate February 14 as 'Cow Hug Day' following directions from the government amid widespread criticism on social media.
The opposition party, however, said the four eminent Congress MPs and leaders who have been included at the instance of the Modi government will, of course, go with the delegations and make their contributions.
He said Priyanka could have been a wonderful candidate in Varanasi as well, especially looking at how good the Congress candidate did against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi slammed Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for suggesting that Republic day celebrations should be cancelled. The minister termed Tharoor's remark "utterly irresponsible".
'I think when he (Modi) apologises for statements like that, then all of us can apologise for saying the opposite abroad. I think this is the level of political discourse we ought to grow out of'
Glimpses from India and around the world that will make you smile and cry.
A couple of scenes outside Parliament as the Houses adjourned for the summer.
Singh met the party MP from Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday after collecting nomination papers for the polls.
'It would be a pity if Tharoor were to be punished for a tweet, no matter how cheekily offensive it may appear to our home-grown politicians. He has said and written far worse to merit retribution for something which is at best a sarcastic comment on dubious austerity,' says Kanchan Gupta.
'We can't afford to fight each other.' 'We have to win the 2026 election.'
In many ways, Shashi Tharoor pointed out, COVID-19 saved the country as the Narendra D Modi's entire legislative momentum was stalled by the urgent need to tackle the pandemic.
Bandyopadhyay told PTI that he received a call from Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and the external affairs ministry, and was asked to go to the US but he informed them that he would not be able to go due to health reasons.
Tharoor said that he could not meet some delegates as their contact details were "missing" from the list that was provided to him.
Tharoor called Kharge, 80, a "candidate of continuity", an apparent reference to the impression that the Karnataka leader is the choice of the Gandhis.
Scindia claimed Tharoor is "lost in his esoteric world of thesaurus", and for him "data mining of selective press articles from the internet qualifies as "research".
In a post on X, Sherman said that he 'emphasised to the Pakistani delegation the importance of combatting terrorism, and in particular, the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, who murdered my constituent Daniel Pearl in 2002'.
Coming down heavily on Union Minister Shashi Tharoor for his "cattle-class" remarks, BJP today said his political probation has been a complete fiasco.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances