'Disqualify Shashi Tharoor As MP': BJP Colleague Cites Covid Remark

Congress's Shashi Tharoor should be disqualified as a member of Parliament for using the term "Indian variant" for the India-dominant B.1.617 strain of the coronavirus, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey has said in a letter to the Speaker.

Shashi Tharoor, the chairman of the Standing Committee on IT, has made the panel "an extension of the Congress", the BJP leader writes in the letter titled: "Cantankerous, inane and rogue behaviour of Dr Shashi Tharoor".

In the past, Nishikant Dubey and Shashi Tharoor have collided over issues ranging from banning Chinese apps, the Facebook controversy over a report that alleged bias towards the BJP and resuming 4G services in Jammu and Kashmir.

In his letter, the BJP MP accuses Mr Tharoor of using in his tweets the phrase "Indian variant" despite his "rich diplomatic experience" when the WHO has also said the variant is called B.1.617.

"It is beyond my comprehension why an Indian MP would use language that is unscientific and derogatory towards Indians. When the Government of India has already written to all social media platforms to remove usage of this word, it is embarrassing to note that a member of our esteemed Lok Sabha uses such discourse to shame the country and its people," Mr Dubey writes.

Accusing Mr Tharoor of pleasing his "political masters", he says "It is a dangerous trend for our democracy for allowing such mischievous elements to continue to serve our Parliament as a Chairperson of a Parliamentary Committee. "

Mr Dubey also alleges that the Congress MP is "more concerned about his party's and Rahul Gandhi's agenda" than the nation.

"Recently, on the Twitter toolkit controversy, he is asking for explanations from the Ministry of Information and Technology when Twitter's action is against this nation's IT law...Shashi Tharoor is helping Twitter act against the government and the nation on the behest of his party and his God Father, who is sitting abroad," Mr Dubey says.

The controversy involves tweets by BJP leaders sharing an alleged "Congress toolkit" to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government over the handling of the Covid second wave. The original tweet by BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, shared by many BJP leaders, has been marked "manipulated media" by Twitter. The Congress has filed a police complaint alleging that the "toolkit" is faked.

The government asked Twitter to remove the "manipulated media" tag and yesterday, the Delhi Police served notice to the social media site asking it to "clarify" its move. The Congress and other opposition parties like Trinamool have questioned the moves against Twitter.