Shashi Tharoor resigns

Indian Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor was asked to quit his post following intensive political pressure from opposition parties in India. According to TV reports, the MoS for the external affairs was asked to resign by PM Manmohan Singh. Apparently, the decision to ask Shashi Tharoor to resign was taken in the Congress core committee's meet.

The nearly two-hour meeting, held at the Prime Minister's House at 7, Race Course Road, was convened to decide the party's action on Tharoor's future in the government. The meeting discussed continuance of the minister in the wake of controversy over allotment of sweat equity of the value of Rs 70 crore to his friend Sunanda Pushkar by the IPL Kochi franchise. Earlier in the day, Tharoor met the prime minister for 50 minutes to present his side of the story over the IPL controversy involving him and close friend Sunanda Pushkar.


Besides Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, her political advisor Ahmed Patel, home minister P Chidambaram, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee and defence minister AK Antony were among those attending the meet. Party sources said Gandhi was unhappy over the entire development and leaders feel that Sunanda Pushkar's offer to return the sweat equity amounted to admission of guilt.


The Core Group is also believed to have discussed the damage wrought by the controversy to the government and the party and that a decision should be taken in a way that the party could face Parliament. Parliament was paralysed on Friday with the opposition demanding Tharoor's resignation. It had also given enough hints that it would continue to rock Parliament on the issue if Tharoor was not not sacked.


(via: toi, ibnlive)