Shashi Tharoor On Pervez Musharraf Remark Row

New Delhi:

Shashi Tharoor on Sunday said he “grew up in India where you have to say kind words to people when they pass away”, fending off strong criticism when he called Pervez Musharraf a “real force”. become enemies for peace” in his message of condolence.

“I grew up in India where you had to say kind words to people when they died. Musharraf was a mortal enemy and was responsible for Kargil but he worked for peace with India, for his own sake, 2002-2007. He is not a friend but he sees strategic interests in peace, neither do we,” Tharoor wrote on Twitter.

I grew up in India, where you had to say kind words to people when they died. Musharraf was archenemy & was responsible for Kargil but he worked for peace with India, for his own good, 2002-7. He is not a friend but he has seen a strategic interest in peace, neither do we.

– Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) February 5, 2023

Mr Tharoor on Sunday mourned the death of the former Pakistani army chief and said that “once a sworn enemy of India, he became a real force for peace between 2002- 2007.”

“‘Pervez Musharraf, Former President of Pakistan, Dies Of Rare Disease’: Once India’s arch enemy, he became a veritable force for peace 2002-2007,” he said. Tharoor wrote on Twitter.

“I met him every year on those days at @un and found him to be smart, engaging and with a clear strategic mindset. RIP,” said the former foreign minister.

Mr. Musharraf died on Sunday at the American Hospital in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after a long illness, Daily Pakistan reported.

Mr Tharoor’s post was met with fierce criticism from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Union Minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar criticized Mr Tharoor saying his post “best describes Cong” (Parliament).

Mr. Chandrashekhar while using Twitter criticized the great party for finding peace in a man who “terrorizes with a backstabbing conflict and tortures our soldiers in violation of all international law”.

“There is nothing like a proper operation so that the Generals of the dictator Fatcat Pak become a “force for peace” and develop “clear strategic thinking”. . Violating international law and causing harm everywhere, these Generals will make their fans admire in India (sic),”, the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar wrote. in his tweets.

In another tweet, Mr. Chandrasekhar said, “That a former Ministry of Foreign Affairs (a party that refused to celebrate the Kargil Vijay Diwas celebration until 2010) would think that a General Pak caused terrorism, a conflict that stabs and tortures our soldiers in violation of all international law, would be a “force for peace” – the best description of Cong.”

That a former Cong Foreign Min (a party that refused to celebrate the Kargil Vijay Diwas celebration until 2010) would think that a General Pak caused terror, backstabbing and torture of its soldiers. we violate all international law, would be a “force for peace” – the best description of Cong. https://t.co/uo5gRu9AYQ

— Rajeev Chandrasekhar (@Rajeev_GoI) February 5, 2023

Musharraf was Pakistan’s army commander during the Kargil war between India and Pakistan.

The conflict between the two countries is said to be orchestrated by Musharraf without the knowledge of then Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Musharraf was the tenth president of Pakistan after a successful military coup in 1999.

He served as the 10th Chairman of the Pakistan Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCSC) from 1998 to 2001 and the 7th top general from 1998 to 2007.

(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)