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Updated on: Nov 09, 2025 01:34 pm IST
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“Totality of Nehruji’s career cannot be judged by the China setback, nor Indira Gandhi’s by the Emergency alone,” Tharoor seeks “same courtesy” for Advani
After Congress leader Shashi Tharoor’s praise for BJP veteran LK Advani on his 98th birthday led to questions over his ideology, the former minister has reacted with a caveat, using Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi’s examples for his argument.
“Reducing his (Advani’s) long years of service to one episode, however significant, is also unfair,” Tharoor said on X, after a lawyer pointed apparently towards Advani’s Rath Yatra, which is seen as a catalyst for the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya where a Ram Mandir now stands after the Supreme Court’s ruling.
“The totality of Nehruji’s career cannot be judged by the China setback, nor Indira Gandhi’s by the Emergency alone. I believe we should extend the same courtesy to Advaniji,” Tharoor said in reply to lawyer Sanjay Hegde on X.
“Sorry Mr Tharoor, unleashing the ‘dragon seeds of hatred’ (to quote Khushwant Singh) in this country is not public service,” Hegde had commented on Tharoor’s original birthday post for Advani.
Writer-journalist Khushwant Singh had said, “Mr Advani, you sowed the dragon seeds of hatred in this country,” directly to the BJP leader at a public meeting where Advani was the chief guest and Khushwant Singh was presiding. The quote is also mentioned in Khushwant Singh’s book, ‘The End of India’.
In his birthday wishes for Advani, Tharoor shared an old photo of his with the former deputy PM, and said his “unwavering commitment to public service, his modesty & decency, and his role in shaping the trajectory of modern India are indelible”. Describing Advani as “a true statesman”, Tharoor said his “life of service has been exemplary”.
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