Modi's remarks deplored within BJP: Tharoor

Newly inducted minister of state for HRD Sashi Tharoor today expressed gratification to senior BJP leaders who in private had deplored Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s comment about his wife Sunanda Pushkar.

Newly inducted minister of state for HRD Sashi Tharoor on Sunday expressed gratification to senior BJP leaders who in private had deplored Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s comment about his wife Sunanda Pushkar.

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Modi had described Pushkar as Tharoor’s “Rs. 50 crore girlfriend” during an election rally in Himachal Pradesh earning ire from the Congress and women activists. Reacting to the comment, Tharoor had described his wife as “priceless” in a tweet.

In his first public comments on the issue, Tharoor said on television show Devil’s Advocate that he was gratified by the enormous number of BJP leaders including some former ministers who called him and regretted the deplorable conduct of their own.

When asked whether he was worried about the Opposition trying to rake up corruption charges against him leading to his resignation two years back, Tharoor replied in negative. “I hope not. First of all there isn't anything in the past. As I said there is no money involved, no acts of corruption. I am not sure what they would keep raking up...,” he said.

“We have 20 bills pending, 11 on higher education and nine on school education. I don't think it will be realistic to get all through, but we would certainly want to try and get as many as possible passed in the next couple of sessions," Tharoor said.

The new minister of state also expressed lot of confidence in his senior colleague M M Pallam Raju saying he spent more years in Lok Sabha than his predecessor Kapil Sibal.