Shashi Tharoor Calls Kejriwal A ‘Eunuch’ To Criticise Him Over CAA Inaction; No Outrage From LGBT Groups

Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday (14 January) issued an apology for his comments accusing Aam Aadmi Party chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of inaction in the wake of violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act and comparing him to eunuchs for “wanting power without responsibilities”, reports News18.

Tharoor in an interview to CNN-News18 on Monday (13 January) said that Kejriwal had made statements deploring the CAA and National Register of Citizens (NRC) but had not taken any tangible action.

“He (Kejriwal) has not even shown human compassion one expects from a chief minister from victims of violence in his state. In any other state, had students been bashed up in this manner, the chief minister would have visited them and shown them some concern,” He said.

“Mr Kejriwal really wants power without responsibility, which we all know has been the prerogative of eunuchs for ages (sic),” Tharoor added.

After Tharoor’s statement, there was massive outrage on social media, with many users saying the comments were unacceptable.

Some users also questioned the silence of the LGBTQ community over the Congress MP’s remarks.

“ Shashi Tharoor called Arvind Kejriwal a eunuch. The LGBTQ community on Twitter isn’t offended because it comes from an English speaking MP from the Congress party. Irony is, this MP introduced a bill to amend Section 377. Is everything they do a farce?” said a twitter user.

Following the outrage, Tharoor apologised for the remarks on Tuesday (14 January) Morning. However, the Congress MP said that he regretted the use of the line “power without responsibility” and made no mention of the eunuch reference.

“Apologies to those who found my quote about “power without responsibility” offensive. It’s an old line from British politics, going back to Kipling & PrimeMinister Stanley Baldwin, &most recently used by Tom Stoppard. I recognize that its use today was inappropriate &withdraw it,” the Congress leader tweeted.

According to the report, Tharoor has been critical of the Delhi CM ever since violent protests broke out in Jawaharlal Nehru University campus on 5 January.