India Shastra Book Launch

Leader of the Congress Party, and former Union Minister, Mr. Shashi Tharoor, recently launched his new book India Shastra at IIC. On the occasion, people had the opportunity to see the renowned journalist, Mr. Rajdeep sardesai, in conversational dialogues with Mr. Tharoor, what was a “brilliant rapture of ideas and at times differences of ideas” Saugata Biswas, a businssman and attendee of the launch said.

India Shastra

Mr. Tharoor, during the talk, expressed that it would have been good, if the Congress Vice President, Mr. Rahul Gandhi had attended the Budget Session, but at the same time also expressed his confidence that Mr. Gandhi would return from his break with an agenda which would mark a change.

“Very seriously, it would be good if Rahul Gandhi had attended the Budget Session… That is something that we offered on a platter to the opposition”, said Mr. Tharoor, before the discussion went open to the audience, during the launch. However, he also added that he respects Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s “right to make his decision”.

Shashi Tharoor with Rajdeep Sardesai At the book launch of India Shastra

“I am very confident that he would come back renewed and bring an agenda for change,” said Mr. Tharoor on the occasion.

The former Union Minister, who had enraged his party members by praising Narendra Modi and had also been displaced as the official Spokesperson for congress, in the meantime, identified the incongruities between the grandiloquence and the actions of Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi.

Shashi Tharoor With Rajdeep Sardesai

Mr. Tharoor said he found a lot of contrasts in Modi’s speech and actions.

“Obviously, the speech to church leaders last week was too late to put in my book, but up until last week, he had used extremely negative language as well as specific actions which I have enumerated in the book of violence against minorities and communalism.” Mr. Tharoor added, during the session.

“The second contradiction is that, he (Modi) is advocating a very liberal agenda. If you listen to what he (Modi) said, he seeks to fulfill that agenda on the back of a profoundly illiberal faith which is the Sangh culture,” he added.

Shashi Tharoor Addressing the Audience

Mr. Tharoor pointed out that “this approach by Modi will flounder”.

“You want foreign investment; you want to open up trade opportunities while the very followers you are dependent on, for electoral victory, are driving away foreigners and foreign investment and so on.” He said, keeping the perspective of foreign trade relations.

When asked, whether, he would like to be a spokesperson for the external affairs, he jokingly said, that he would love to be the minister for external affairs.

“Why will an Arab investor feel safe if the Muslims don’t feel safe in the country. Why would the European want to come with large sums of money if the churches are being attacked. These are real questions. So his silence was actually undercutting his own image,” were some of the questions, that he raised on the occasion.

“You can’t have one sort of message for “RSS” and the “Sangh Parivar” and try and give a different one for the rest of the country. In today’s day and age, it does not work that way,” he stated.