Inauguration of Ram temple is only for political benefit: Shashi Tharoor

CHENNAI: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday said that he will be visiting Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya sometime after January 22.

Addressing the gathering at the 54th anniversary ceremony of Tamil magazine Thuglak at the Music Academy, the executive council member of the Indian National Congress (INC), Shashi Tharoor said, "The only reason for Lord Ram temple inauguration on January 22 is political benefit. I will go to Ram temple, but I will not go on January 22. Four Shankaracharyas said they wouldn't be attending the 'Pran Pratishtha' (consecration) event as the Ram Mandir is not yet fully completed. But, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi will preside over the consecration ceremony."

Pointing out the financial assistance given to Northern states and Southern states, the former Union Minister said India's federalism is in a very precarious position.

"The development of Southern states is being used against them. States in the North consistently receive more funds. Funds are continuously being given to them (Northern States) without any plan and without any question. But due to the development in the Southern states, they could not get the funds from the Centre. Southern states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu are being penalised for working properly and planning for development. In the case of Karnataka, the government works only with 73 per cent state funds. In the case of Bihar, only 23 per cent of state funds are used for governance. 77 per cent of the funds are provided by the Centre," he detailed.

Further, the Tiruvananthapuram MP noted that if the 16th Finance Commission comes into operation after the Lok Sabha elections the condition of Southern states will become even worse.

"If the state tax is redefined, India's federalism will be a question mark. In terms of population, the number of seats in Uttar Pradesh is the same as that of the entire Southern state."

"Today, only divisive politics is taking place in the name of Hindutva. A Muslim can be Tamil, Muslim and Indian at the same time. That is the beauty of India. In other words, if you look at the names of those who sacrificed for India through the army, there are people of all religions and castes," added Tharoor.

Dismissing the allegations made by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, BJP state president K Annamalai said more funds cannot be given only to the states that generate more revenue.

In response to Shashi Tharoor, Annamalai said, "After the Niti Aayog comes in, all the states are properly allocated funds. Residents of the eight districts in the Western region (Kongu belt) dominate the economy of Tamil Nadu. More funds cannot be given only to the states that generate more revenue. If so, should more funds be allocated to the districts that contribute more to the development of Tamil Nadu? Thus, calculating the fund allocation based on revenue is a completely wrong practice. While providing funds, we should keep in mind the growth for the next 20 years. UP and Gujarat have attracted more investment than TN. Very soon, Uttar Pradesh will show more output than the entire southern states."

Meanwhile, Thuglak magazine editor S Gurumurthy opined that if there is any major blow to AIADMK in the upcoming parliamentary elections, there is a possibility of another vertical split in the MGR party after the elections.

"DMK was scared of MGR and J Jayalalithaa, there is no such fear of AIADMK now. But DMK is scared of Annamalai now. AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami is the only reason why a strong alliance was not formed against the DMK. If there is any major blow to AIADMK in the upcoming parliamentary elections, there is a possibility of another vertical split in the party after the elections," Gurumurthy said while answering the questions at the Thuglak magazine's 54th anniversary ceremony.

Lauding BJP president Annamalai, the auditor said, "When actor Rajinikanth wanted to enter politics, he thought of making Annamalai as his Chief Ministerial candidate. Annamalai is ready to become a CM candidate in 2026. BJP will field him in 2026 depending on how much attraction the party gets in 2024 Parliamentary elections. No one can be more serious about Annamalai being the CM candidate than me. If the BJP stands alone this time (2024 LS Polls), it will get good votes and even secure the second place in many LS constituencies. It can also win in some constituencies."

Recalling the meeting with the versatile actor Kamal Haasan in 2016, auditor Gurumurthy said, "I advised Kamal Haasan not to start a political party. A party cannot be formed by seeing a crowd."