Urge my party colleagues to respect my approach: Tharoor on praising Modi

Facing flak from Kerala Congress over his statement praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday said he has been a "strong critic" of the BJP-led government and urged his partymen to "respect his approach even when they don't agree with it".

"I've been a strong critic of the Modi government and I hope a constructive one. My staunch defence of inclusive values and constitutional principles has won me 3 elections. I urge my fellow Congressmen to respect my approach even when they don't agree with it," he tweeted.

Tharoor courted controversy after he said that Modi should be "praised whenever he says or does the right thing". He also endorsed the statements of senior partymen Jairam Ramesh and Abhishek Manu Singhvi where they said that "demonising" the Prime Minister is "wrong".

"As you know, I have argued for six years now that @narendramodi should be praised whenever he says or does the right thing, which would add credibility to our criticisms whenever he errs. I welcome others in Oppn coming around to a view for which I was excoriated at the time!" Tharoor had tweeted on Sunday.

Upset with his statement, Kerala Congress chief Mullappally Ramachandran said the party unit will seek an explanation from Tharoor following which the future course of action will be decided.

( With inputs from ANI )