Tharoor Attends Presidential Dinner, Opp Part Leaders Excluded
As promised, Shashi Tharoor said he would attend the state dinner at the presidential home in memory of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said he would go to the event. Also, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, two top Congress leaders and important opposition leaders, did not receive an invitation.
The fact that neither of the Leaders of the Opposition was on the guest list immediately raised concerns about unfair representation at the dinner.
Concerns from Congress: protocol ignored; political undertones alleged
The list of dinner invitations made people in Congress angry. Senior party leaders said the government broke the rules by not calling both opposition leaders but inviting only one member. The head of the party’s media department said the decision was unfair and against democratic principles. They said it made people question the rules for public events like this.
The reaction within the company was quick. One senior source said it was strange—but not surprising to them—that Tharoor was invited but not the other top party leaders. He wondered whether the invitation list was based on politics rather than on standard procedures meant to ensure that many people were considered.
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Tharoor Explains Invitation and Expresses Surprise Over Exclusion of LoPs,
According to Tharoor, he had a good reason for going to the banquet: he was the Chairman of the parliamentary standing committee for foreign affairs, which had been a valid reason for him to attend similar events during previous state visits. He said the offer was a continuation of the calling back of that gathering. He said he didn’t know what the standards were for inviting people, which is why the two Leaders of the Opposition weren’t there when asked.
Because of complaints from people in Tharoor’s own party, he made it clear that he was only taking the offer and that officials don’t send invitations. His words were, I don’t know why invitations were sent.
What It Means: A dinner for diplomats turns into a political flashpoint.
Because of the invite problem, what was supposed to be an official foreign event has become a source of political tension within the country. Since the dinner was being held at the top level for a visiting foreign head, everyone was supposed to be able to join in. Instead, the selected call has shown splits in the resistance and made people wonder if state policy is being followed.
Some people are worried that this could lead to people’s participation at state dinners and other public events being based on political ease instead of long-standing rules of kindness and openness. People who want to ask him say that norms change over time and that the Chairman of the External Affairs Committee deserves to be represented just as much as any other party leader. We won’t know for sure for a while if this issue changes how the opposition works together or how it looks to the public.
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