Tharoor backs Centre on PoK but says Article 370 move violated Constitution’s spirit

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said in Jaipur on Thursday that he had no real disagreement with the government’s position on Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, but that the way it had revoked Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir went against the spirit of the Constitution.

On Kashmir

Tharoor was chief guest at an event titled ‘India in Crisis’, organised by the All India Professional Congress. He said Pakistan had no claim over PoK and had handed territory to China that was not its own. Internally, however, he said he differed with the government, which he accused of violating the Constitution’s spirit.

Lynching and investment

Tharoor said mob lynchings in the name of the cow were damaging India’s reputation abroad. He said people he meets overseas raise such killings, and that the climate they create is making investors wary.

Doubts over Balakot

Referring to the Indian Air Force strike on a terror camp at Balakot on February 26, Tharoor said several international reports had concluded that no terrorists were killed. He said foreign media had published pictures as proof and that the government should show evidence if it claims the strike was effective.

He added that the strike nonetheless sent a strong message that Indian aircraft could enter Pakistani airspace and hit a target, and that India would not sit idle. His point, he said, was that international coverage had raised questions about its effectiveness.

Pilot on the economy

Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, who also attended, said data showed unemployment was the country’s biggest problem and called for concrete steps to steady the macro-economic situation. He said every sector faced a slowdown, investor confidence had dropped, bad loans had risen, banks were not lending, jobs were not being created and factories had closed.

See also: Indian National Congress and Lok Sabha members.

Originally published on 20 September 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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