Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers deliberately destroyed Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s office in Kerala’s Trivandrum this afternoon. The attack was planned by the Bhartiya Yuva Morcha activists, to protest against Tharoor’s ‘Hindu Pakistan’ remarks.
Also Read: Shashi Tharoor’s ‘Hindu Pakistan’ remark sparks uproar between Congress-BJP
Police said that the workers reportedly poured black oil at the entrance of the office and put up a black flag and a board reading ‘Tharoor’s Pakistan office’ after destroying the original signboard. When the attack took place Tharoor was present at the office. The protesters fled the scene when the police reached. A case has been registered against unidentified persons.
Criticizing the attack, Tharoor said, “People had come with their concerns but you scared them away from here. Is this what we want in our country? I am asking as a citizen, not as an MP. This is not the Hinduism that I know of.”
Neither Tharoor who is currently in Thiruvananthapuram, nor anyone else was at the office when the attack took place. The protestors fled the scene when the police reached the spot. Police have registered a case against a group of unidentified persons. While the Congress condemned the attack, the BJP has justified it.
BJP Thiruvananthapuram district president S Suresh said the Yuva Morcha workers’ action was a democratic way of protest. “Workers have every right to vent their anger if they are provoked with such irresponsible statements,” he said.
Also Read: Shashi Tharoor faces a lawsuit in Kolkata over ‘Hindu Pakistan’ remark