Congress could have been more vocal on issues like Bilkis Bano and murder in name of cow vigilantism, says Shashi Tharoor

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said the Congress should be absolutely clear in its ideological stance in favour of an inclusive India and pointed out that party could have been more vocal on issues such as the Bilkis Bano outrage and murder in the name of cow vigilantism.

We should be absolutely clear in our ideological stance in favour of inclusive India. The tendency to downplay some positions or avoid taking a stand on some issues in order not to alienate what we assume to be the sentiments of the majority only plays into the BJP's hands, Tharoor said.

We must have the courage of our convictions. We could have been more vocal on the Bilkis Bano outrage, attacks on Christian churches, murder in the name of cow vigilantism, bulldozer demolition of Muslim homes and similar issues, he said.

According to a report of PTI, Last year in August, all 11 convicts sentenced to life imprisonment in the 2002 post-Godhra Bilkis Bano gang rape case walked out of the Godhra sub-jail after the Gujarat government allowed their release under its remission policy, triggering outrage from various sections, including the Congress.

He said every effort must be made to strengthen the secular foundations of the country. The fact is that India's future is bright as long as the Congress fights the good fight, Tharoor said. He also hailed the Bharat Jodo Yatra, saying it has revived the confidence of the party cadre. From here let us send out a message of Congress jodo, Tharoor said.

We want economic growth but we must ensure that the fruits of that growth reach the poor and the marginalised. India will not shine until it shines for all, he stressed. There was no Congress foreign policy or BJP foreign policy only Indian foreign policy and Indian national interest. This tradition has sadly been undermined by the (Narendra) Modi government, Tharoor said.

It is shocking to hear our foreign minister imply that China is too rich to stand up to. We must demand that Parliament be taken into confidence, that the nation be told what is our thinking about our vital foreign policy interests, he said.

The prevailing situation is indicative of a substantial deterioration from the assiduously-repaired relations developed under prime ministers Rajiv Gandhi, Narasimha Rao and Dr Manmohan Singh. We firmly believe that we have a duty to stand up for India’s security and territorial sovereignty, which the BJP government has failed to do, the party said.

The Congress alleged that the government has failed to take the people of India into confidence about the repeated transgressions by the Chinese military at various points across the LAC, while it continues to engage with China in an "unstructured manner.