Parliamentary panel visit not meant to assess Kashmir situation: Tharoor after remarks draw Congress’s ire

Published 22 June 2026 · politics

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's remarks about "encouraging progress towards normalcy" in Jammu and Kashmir, made after a meeting with LG Manoj Sinha, have not

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's remarks about "encouraging progress towards normalcy" in Jammu and Kashmir, made after a meeting with LG Manoj Sinha, have not gone down well with his party in Jammu. Tharoor is the Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs which is visiting Jammu and Kashmir. "We discussed the situation in the State and the encouraging progress towards normalcy. When I arrived, he was chatting with the President of the Kashmiri Writers' Association and the Women's Organisation — a positive outreach that I welcomed. Many challenges remain, and much remains to be done, but I left the meeting feeling more positive than I have felt for a while," Mr. Tharoor posted on Sunday (June 21, 2026) while sharing a photograph with the Lieutenant Governor in Srinagar. Chief spokesperson of the J-K Pradesh Congress Committee, Ravinder Sharma, took exception to the post by Mr. Tharoor, suggesting he should have met the people of Kashmir. "People of Kashmir, too, were expecting you to meet them to gain a better understanding of the ground realities. "At least you could have spared some time to meet your own party workers who have been fighting for the restoration of statehood, which was taken away seven years ago," Mr. Sharma posted on X.

Amid the controversy, Mr. Tharoor on Monday (June 22) said the panel is in Jammu and Kashmir, not to evaluate conditions in the Valley, and its focus is limited to matters related to foreign affairs, including India-Pakistan and Sino-Indian relations, and passport services. Heading a 10-member Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, Mr. Tharoor arrived in Jammu on Sunday (June 21) evening. The panel met senior police officials on Monday (June 22) morning before reviewing the functioning of passport offices and Passport Seva Kendras in the region. Defending his statement, Mr. Tharoor said he had so far only met the Lieutenant Governor and had not interacted with a wider cross-section of people in the Valley. “I have not had a chance to see other things and listen to other people's voices. So I just want to make it very clear, this is not a visit about checking the conditions in Kashmir Valley,” Mr. Tharoor told reporters on the sidelines of the panel’s visit to the passport office here. The Congress leader said the committee is in the Union Territory to study three specific issues — India-Pakistan relations, Sino-Indian relations, and the functioning of passport offices and Passport Seva Kendras.