CJP co-convenor Saurav Das has reignited an old political controversy involving Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, asking him to revisit his widely discussed 2018 “scorpion on a Shivling” remark about Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The exchange began on Wednesday after Das shared a video of PM Modi offering prayers to Lord Shiva. Tagging Tharoor on X, Das referred to the Congress leader’s earlier controversial statement and asked whether the video warranted a repeat of that observation.
Tharoor responded that he did not understand what Das was referring to and asked him to explain. Das followed up with another post, this time using elaborate, Tharoor-like language to describe the old controversy and once again inviting the Congress MP to comment.
The reference dates back to 2018, when Tharoor was reported to have referred to an analogy involving a scorpion sitting on a Shivling while discussing Modi. The remark triggered a political and legal controversy, with BJP leader Rajiv Babbar subsequently filing a defamation complaint against Tharoor.
Babbar alleged that the comment was not only directed at the Prime Minister but also offended the religious sentiments of devotees of Lord Shiva. Tharoor, however, maintained that he had referred to material that had already appeared in an earlier article and argued that his statement had been made in good faith.
The legal dispute continued for several years. Tharoor challenged the criminal defamation proceedings and eventually approached the Supreme Court after the Delhi High Court rejected his plea. The Supreme Court later indicated that the matter could be brought to an end and observed that the complainant should not be overly sensitive to such remarks.
Against this background, Das’s latest posts have brought the old controversy back into the political conversation. His comments also come at a time when CJP has been actively campaigning on several political and electoral issues, including its criticism of the Election Commission.
The exchange between Das and Tharoor has attracted attention largely because of its unusual tone. Rather than directly repeating the controversial remark, Das used sophisticated and deliberately elaborate language to allude to it, apparently playing on Tharoor’s reputation for distinctive vocabulary.
For now, Tharoor has not indicated that he intends to repeat or elaborate on his 2018 comment. Das, meanwhile, appears keen to keep the issue alive, turning an old political controversy into a fresh social media exchange.
Reader Comments 0