New Delhi, October 13
A few days after fresh evidence surfaced in the death probe of his wife Sunanda Pushkar, controversial Congress MP Shashi Tharoor today lost his position as party spokesperson for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi and undermining cadre morale.

The punishment followed Tharoor's acceptance of Modi's Clean India invitation. Congress president Sonia Gandhi approved the removal of Tharoor's name from the list of Congress spokespersons on the recommendations of the party's disciplinary committee headed by veteran AK Antony. The committee acted on the complaint by the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) of which the Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram is a member.

The MP, however, said he was not heard by the committee in the matter, though he would have welcomed any opportunity to respond to KPCC's complaint which he had not seen. "I would have welcomed an opportunity to draw the attention of AICC leadership to the full range of my statements and writings on contemporary political issues," said the former HRD Minister of State.

KPCC had demanded strict action against Tharoor for praising Modi and hurting the sentiments of party workers. The trigger was his decision to accept Modi's "Clean India" invitation.

Though the Congress rejected any connection between the removal of Tharoor and the recent findings in the probe of Pushkar's death, the move raised eyebrows considering this is not the first time Tharoor is speaking warmly of PM's initiatives.

He had recently praised Modi's speech at the UNGA 2014 saying, "A strong speech by PMO India, soaring internationalism, support for democracy and environment, anti-terrorism. Good reply to Pak."

Earlier in an article on a US-based news site on the eve of Lok Sabha elections, he had said Modi was working to turn himself from a hate figure to an avatar of modernity and progress. The Congress had then distanced itself from Tharoor's remarks terming them as "personal" - just as it does whenever top leaders embarrass it by making positive comments about the PM. AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh and spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi have done so in the past without attracting censures.

Asked why the party had handpicked Tharoor for punishment, Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza said, "The decision was based on the complaint by KPCC. All this means is Mr Tharoor is not a party spokesperson and his views should not be confused to be party's views."

Some Congress insiders privately admitted the party could be seen as being "excessively touchy" in the matter. Some leaders also recalled the history of conflict between Tharoor and KPCC which never quite accepted the former UN diplomat as their own. When the Congress fielded Tharoor as a candidate from Thiruvananthapuram seat in 2009 LS elections, KPCC stalwarts had objected.

Even later they continued to question his lack of fluency in Malayalam though he returned to the Lok Sabha in a tough 2014 election. The Congress today said Tharoor was very much a party leader and would still head the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs of which, incidentally, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi is a member.