Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that in a democracy oneis free to discuss whatever one wants.
New Delhi:
After New Delhi summoned the UK envoy on Tuesday over “unwarranted discussion” in the British parliament on agricultural reforms in India, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that in a democracy one is free to discuss whatever one wants.
“Just as we, in India, can discuss say the Palestine-Israel issue as we’ve done in the past or we can discuss if we so choose any other domestic issue of a foreign country, British parliament has the same right,” said Mr Tharoor, who was also the junion Foreign Minister during the UPA regime.
“I don’t blame the Government of India for doing its job, for speaking up for its point of view. But we must recognise there is another point of view and that in democracies, elected representatives are free to air their points of view.”
“I don’t think there is something so surprising. We should take it as normal give and takes that happen between democracies,” said Mr Tharoor.
India had summoned British High Commissioner over an “unwarranted discussion” in the British parliament on agricultural reforms in India.
Farmers have been camping at several Delhi border points for over three months now demanding a complete repeal of the three farm laws.
The Foreign Ministry on Tuesday “conveyed strong opposition to the unwarranted and tendentious discussion on agricultural reforms in India in the British parliament”.
“Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla made clear that this represented a gross interference in the politics of another democratic country. He advised that British MPs should refrain from practicing vote bank politics by misrepresenting events, especially in relation to another fellow democracy,” the statement said.