Mumbai should vote to save its cosmopolitanism, says Shashi Tharoor

I stayed in Mumbai for eight to nine years when I was young and I am aware of its character It has an intrinsic characteristic of secularism and cosmopolitanism BJP doesnrsquot understand it and people of Mumbai should come forward and vote for an India that we all should be proud ofrdquo said Congress leader Shashi Tharoor at a press conference at Tikak Bhavan the Maharashtra Congress headquarters in Dadar on SundayTharoor who is contesting the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala was in Mumbai for 24 hours to campaign for the partyrsquos Mumbai North Central and North candidates Varsha Gaikwad and Bhushan Patil He took part in rallies with Sena UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray in Bandra on Saturday eveningTharoor delivered his speech in Hindi and addressed the questions in Hindi as well as in English Speaking about his partyrsquos oncearchrival in Mumbai Shiv Sena UBT Tharoor commended Aaditya and Sena for supporting Congressrsquos candidates ldquoI was there on the same truck with Aaditya and Gaikwad The Sena and all its supporters joined the rally It is mutual support and respect for each otherrdquo Tharoor saidOn ties with allyHailing the MVA alliance Tharoor said ldquoEven though there is an initial hesitation with our voters they will understand and there is give and take with Sena in Mumbairdquo he saidShashi Tharoor Congress leaderStating that Congress treated its alliance parties equally and respectfully he said ldquoWe always look at the larger perspective and there is mutual respect with other parties In contrast the BJP treats its alliance parties in a humiliating way and thatrsquos why parties like Akali Dal separated from it In addition the Central government with a coalition of parties can run the government as efficiently Even Atal Bihari Vajpayee ran it with 26 parties The economic growth of the country is better under coalition governments We will choose the leader for PM after discussion with all the partiesrdquoOn potential mergersClaiming that the BJP was frightened and seeking help from parties like the Shiv Sena or NCP which it ldquobroke with huge amounts of moneyrdquo Tharoor said ldquoThere are many parties that have separated from Congress in history for various reasons but if they follow the same ideology they are welcome back and will get the redcarpet treatmentrdquoOn Muslim candidate issueResponding to a query on why the Congress had failed to field a Muslim candidate Tharoor said ldquoDue to alliances there are a few restrictions The number of seats is the least Then we have to look at many factors including women antiincumbency and alliance partiesrsquo opinions and thatrsquos why sometimes it isnrsquot possible to give tickets to deserving candidates But if you look carefully there isnrsquot a single Muslim minister MP or MLA in any BJP government Earlier there were two to three leaders but after one or two years they were all phased out There isnrsquot any representative for a strong community with 15 to 20 per cent population Under the Congress party there will be representation of allOn secularismldquoDemocracy has been in danger for the last 10 years The soul of diversity and secularism has been targeted As per the Constitution written by Dr Ambedkar every Indian has equal rights But the BJP has introduced a Citizenship Act injecting religion into it We should oppose it not for politics but for the nationrdquo Tharoor saidHe added that after voting in his constituency in Kerala on April 26 he visited eight states as part of a nationwide tour ldquoAfter three phases of polls now it seems lsquohawa badal rahi hairsquo It is not only related to South India but all overrdquo he saidOn RahulModi debateThe threetime MP said ldquoApart from the scripted interviews Narendra Modi never faced unprepared unscripted questions BJP contended PM Manmohan Singh was Mouni Mohan Singh but he used to take at least three to four interviews a year and even gave interviews for unprepared questions Now Modi should reply to the questions of the nation on unemployment not doubling the income of farmers suicide of farmers safety of women etcrdquoHe added that AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal had made a very apt comment on the retirement age of Modi ldquoThe BJP itself insisted that the leaders should retire at 75 of their age and Modi is turning 75 in September 2025 But we do not need to wait till then The government will change on June 4 2024rdquo he saidApr 26Day Tharoor cast his vote