New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI): After the Congress criticised the Centre for 'sidelining' the Opposition by not including Lok Sabha LoP, Rahul Gandhi, in the all-party delegation to expose Pakistan's support for terrorism, BJP leader Gaurav Vallabh hit back, claiming that 'merit is suppressed in Congress' and questioning why the party 'hates their own leader so much.'

The Centre has appointed Congress MP Shashi Tharoon to lead the delegation to USA, Panama, Guyana, Brazil, and Colombia to expose Pakistan's support to terrorism.

BJP's Vallabh has claimed that the party is opposed to Shashi Tharoor leading the group because the party does not believe in rewarding merit.

'In Congress merit is suppressed, Chamchagiri (bootlicking) and other things are promoted. Congress should clarify why it hates Tharoor so much. When the Prime Minister of the country, the government, wants Tharoor to represent the country, then what problem does the Congress have with this? The only problem is that he is moving ahead on merit,' Vallabh told ANI on Saturday.

Earlier, Union Minister and West Bengal BJP president highlighted that ultimately it is the Prime Minister's prerogative who he choses to represent the country, while also praising Tharoor as a knowledgeable person who knows about the External Affairs Ministry.

'It is the Prime Minister's prerogative who he will choose to send. When Atal Bihari Vajpayee was chosen for the task, the Prime Minister of the then Congress government chose him... Shashi Tharoor is one of the eminent personalities who knows about the External Affairs Ministry. He is a knowledgeable person in that area, which is why he was chosen,' Majumdar told reporters during the Tiranga Yatra in Nadia.

Congress has claimed that it had given names of certain party leaders to be selected as part of the all-party delegation, however, despite Shashi Tharoor's name not being given by the party, the government had decided to have him lead a group of MPs to US and other countries.

On May 17, Congress MP Manickam Tagore alleged that PM Modi had sidelined the Opposition while mentioning that prior to 2014, Prime Ministers upheld Parliamentary dignity by consulting the Leader of Opposition for national delegations.

In a post on X, Manickam Tagore shared, 'Since Independence, PMs upheld Parliamentary dignity by consulting LoPs for national delegations. But post-2014, Modi has sidelined the Opposition, destroying established norms. Why this arrogance? Why break democratic traditions that united India globally?'

Jairam Ramesh had also criticised the government earlier for not accepting all the names suggested by the party, calling it 'dishonest on the government's part.'

Shashi Tharoor is set to lead an eight-member delegation which will go to United States, Panama, Guyana, Brazil, and Colombia. BJP's Shashank Mani Tripathi, Bhubaneswar Kalita, and Tejasvi Surya, along with LJP (Ram Vilas)'s Shambhavi Choudhary, TDP's GM Harish Balayogi, Shiv Sena's Milind Deora, JMM's Sarfaraz Ahmad, along with former Ambassador to US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu are part of the delegation.

The all party delegation is India's diplomatic effort to expose Pakistan's support for terrorism at the global stage and brief other countries about Operation Sindoor, which targeted terror infrastructure deep inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. The operation eliminated over 100 terrorists linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen.

Following the strikes, Pakistan retaliated with cross-border shelling and attempted drone attacks. In response, India launched coordinated airstrikes that damaged key military infrastructure across 11 Pakistani airbases. On May 10, both sides announced an understanding on cessation of hostilities. (ANI)