Shashi Tharoor puts Congress in a spot again; backs controversial bill

New Delhi: When opposition parties on Wednesday came down heavily on the Centre over the three new bills seeking the removal of prime ministers, chief ministers and other ministers held in custody for 30 days on serious criminal charges, one specific Congress leader struck a different note.

Senior MP Shashi Tharoor, widely criticised for his remarks seen as praise for the Modi government, said he agreed with the “core principle” of the legislation.

On the face of it, the bill seems reasonable and does make sense. Whoever does anything wrong should be liable to punishment and should not be holding a high constitutional or political office. I think that makes sense,” Tharoor said, even as the rest of the Opposition staged fierce protests.

The three bills, the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, 2025; the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025; and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2025, propose the removal of the Prime Minister, Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and other ministers if they are arrested and detained for 30 consecutive days on charges carrying a minimum punishment of five years.

Opposition parties, including Congress MPs, termed the move “draconian” and “anti-democratic”, warning that it would be misused to target opposition -led governments and undermine federalism. Members raised slogans inside Parliament, stormed the well of the House, and even tore copies of the bills in protest.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra accused the BJP government of “trying to pull the wool over the eyes of the people” with legislation that threatens democracy. Party MP K C Venugopal also raised the issue of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s arrest during his Gujarat tenure, questioning his claims of morality. Shah countered that he had resigned before his arrest and rejoined government only after being discharged by the court. “We cannot be so shameless that we continue to occupy constitutional positions while facing serious charges,” Shah said.

While Opposition leaders demanded that the bills be withdrawn, Tharoor maintained that a Joint Parliamentary Committee should examine their pros and cons, insisting that his stand was different from the rest. His remarks have given the ruling BJP an opportunity to highlight differences within the Opposition, even as critics accused him of deviating from the Congress party line and siding with the government.