'Not Bangladesh or France': Shashi Tharoor says violence would not be condoned in India, rejects regime change allegations

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has rejected comparisons between protests in India and the unrest in Bangladesh and France, saying the situations are different and the analogies are not particularly relevant. He said the opposition supports peaceful demonstrations and is seeking free and fair elections, not regime change.

“I think that India is not Bangladesh and India is not France. I don't see these analogies as particularly relevant,” Tharoor told ANI.

He said Bangladesh faced a particular situation under specific circumstances, while protests in France reflected broader discontent over inflation, the cost of living and unemployment, issues that also affect parts of India.

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Tharoor said the Congress would not condone violence, including the burning of buses and police stations reported in France. Instead, he said, peaceful protest was a constitutional right in a democracy.

“The logic of peaceful protest is that in a democracy like ours under the constitution, citizens of India have the right to express their discontent publicly and peacefully,” he said.

Rejecting allegations that the opposition was seeking to topple the government, Tharoor said its demand was for free and fair elections and the restoration of citizens' voting rights. He raised concerns over large numbers of people being removed from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, describing the process as troublesome, irregular and partially illegal.

He said the issue was constitutional and that every citizen should be able to exercise their right to vote and determine their political future.

“Democracy is not a gift of anybody, it is not a gift of the government, it is not a gift of the election commission,” Tharoor said, adding that the Constitution and India's freedom struggle had secured that right.

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Congress Rajya Sabha MP Pawan Khera also questioned comparisons between India and Europe, accusing those drawing parallels of portraying Muslims as inherently violent and reducing European protests to a “Muslim problem”. He alleged that peaceful protests in India had faced force from the state and right-wing groups.

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, meanwhile, alleged that a conspiracy similar to those behind violence in Bangladesh and France had been planned in India, involving anti-India groups and some politicians seeking to incite unrest. He said political change in India must happen through elections.

The debate comes amid a Fox News Digital investigation published on October 9 that identified 50 organisations allegedly linked to France's student protest movement and its wider network, including groups in India and other countries.