Congress MP Shashi Tharoor expressed his disdain for what he termed “low-level politics” after photos of him with Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra were circulated online.
Tharoor claimed that the photos were taken during a birthday celebration and were distorted to give the impression of a secret meeting. He stated that Mahua Moitra was several years younger than him and he viewed her as a “child”.
“This is such low-level politics,” Tharoor said during an interaction with the media in Kerala’s Kottayam. “It was that child’s birthday. I can’t call her a child, but for me, she is like one. She is 10 to 20 years younger than me.”
“It was her birthday party, and there were 15 people present,” he elaborated. “My sister was also invited, and she was in attendance. However, some people deliberately cropped out others and presented it as some secret private meeting. Anyone who sees these photos should think about who would have taken the photo if it was indeed a secret meeting. It was her birthday.”
Tharoor further denounced “online trolls” and the attention given to such matters. “I don’t give all these trolls much importance, not even the importance that the media sometimes gives them. I won’t be giving it any more importance either. Our priority is working for the people,” he said.
Earlier, TMC MP Mahua Moitra had accused the “BJP’s troll sena” of circulating her personal pictures before making light of situation. She clarified that the images were taken out of context.
“Bengal’s women live a life. Not a lie,” Moitra wrote on X (formerly Twitter) in response to the photos that depicted her wearing dresses and holding a cigar.
Expressing her amusement at the “leaked” photos, she added, “I like the green dress better on me than the white blouse. And why bother cropping – show the rest of the folks at dinner as well.”