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Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's remarks astir "encouraging advancement towards normalcy" in Jammu and Kashmir, made aft a gathering with LG Manoj Sinha, person not gone down good with his enactment successful Jammu.
Mr. Tharoor is the Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee connected External Affairs which is visiting Jammu and Kashmir.
"We discussed the concern successful the State and the encouraging advancement towards normalcy. When I arrived, helium was chatting with the President of the Kashmiri Writers' Association and the Women's Organisation — a affirmative outreach that I welcomed. Many challenges remain, and overmuch remains to beryllium done, but I near the gathering feeling much affirmative than I person felt for a while," Mr. Tharoor posted connected Sunday (June 21, 2026) portion sharing a photograph with the Lieutenant Governor successful Srinagar.
Chief spokesperson of the J-K Pradesh Congress Committee, Ravinder Sharma, took objection to the station by Mr. Tharoor, suggesting helium should person met the radical of Kashmir. "People of Kashmir, too, were expecting you to conscionable them to summation a amended knowing of the crushed realities.
"At slightest you could person spared immoderate clip to conscionable your ain enactment workers who person been warring for the restoration of statehood, which was taken distant 7 years ago," Mr. Sharma posted connected X.
Amid the controversy, Mr. Tharoor connected Monday (June 22) said the sheet is successful Jammu and Kashmir, not to measure conditions successful the Valley, and its absorption is constricted to matters related to overseas affairs, including India-Pakistan and Sino-Indian relations, and passport services.
Heading a 10-member Parliamentary Standing Committee connected External Affairs, Mr. Tharoor arrived successful Jammu connected Sunday (June 21) evening.
The sheet met elder constabulary officials connected Monday (June 22) greeting earlier reviewing the functioning of passport offices and Passport Seva Kendras successful the region.
Defending his statement, Mr. Tharoor said helium had truthful acold lone met the Lieutenant Governor and had not interacted with a wider cross-section of radical successful the Valley.
“I person not had a accidental to spot different things and perceive to different people's voices. So I conscionable privation to marque it precise clear, this is not a sojourn astir checking the conditions successful Kashmir Valley,” Mr. Tharoor told reporters connected the sidelines of the panel’s sojourn to the passport bureau here.
The Congress person said the committee is successful the Union Territory to survey 3 circumstantial issues — India-Pakistan relations, Sino-Indian relations, and the functioning of passport offices and Passport Seva Kendras.
“We're not present to look astatine home matters; it's not our business. We are the External Affairs Committee. That's it all. That's what I person to say,” helium said.
The parliamentary committee, which besides includes MPs Asaduddin Owaisi, Arun Govil, Arvind Ganpat Sawant, Vijay Baghel, K. Laxman, B.S. Mubarak, Vikas Kumar and B.S. Rawat, is scheduled to sojourn the service office for a briefing and the Jammu borderline earlier leaving for Kashmir connected Tuesday (June 23). They are besides scheduled to sojourn Ladakh arsenic portion of the survey tour.
Mr. Tharoor said the sheet held elaborate discussions with officials of the Regional Passport Office, the Ministry of External Affairs, the constabulary and the postal department, with peculiar absorption connected delays successful passport issuance successful Jammu and Kashmir.
The members emphasised the request to expedite passport processing and delivery, helium said, describing the sojourn arsenic meaningful. He said the sheet would proceed its appraisal implicit the adjacent 4 days earlier finalising its recommendations, adding that definite improvements successful the existing strategy were required and would beryllium reflected successful its report.
Earlier, the BJP MP Govil said Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed important improvements and improvement implicit the years.
“It [situation] feels precise bully now. Everything is going well. A tremendous magnitude of enactment is being carried retired present each day,” helium said. Recalling his earlier visits to the region, the actor-turned-politician said, “We person travel present before, including astatine times erstwhile shootings utilized to instrumentality place. The concern has changed considerably, and present everything is good.” The Parliamentarian besides took a swipe astatine the Congress enactment implicit its disapproval of Tharoor, alleging that it habitually opposes affirmative developments. “Congress tends to criticise each bully thing. It has go its habit,” helium remarked.
BJP person Shahnawaz Hussain said the Congress is captious of Tharoor whenever helium "speaks the information arsenic an MP". "They don't privation immoderate MP to person immoderate idiosyncratic opinion. The Congress wants its MPs to parrot Rahul Gandhi's views," helium said.
