Shashi Tharoor responds to trolls over his post calling landslide-hit Wayanad visit 'memorable'
New Delhi/IBNS: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has responded to the social media backlash over his tweet describing a visit to landslide-hit Wayanad as "memorable".
He said the word 'memorable' means something likely to be remembered because it is "unforgettable".
"For all the trolls: definition of 'memorable': Something that is memorable is worth remembering or likely to be remembered, because it is special or unforgettable. That's all I meant," the Thiruvananthapuram MP posted on X amid the row over his earlier post.
Some memories of a memorable day in Wayanad pic.twitter.com/h4XEmQo66W
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) August 3, 2024
On Saturday, the Congress MP visited areas devastated due to the landslides in Wayanad that have left over 300 dead and many others missing.
He shared a video on social media showing him helping unload relief supplies arranged by his office for those who have lost their homes in the calamity and are now in relief camps.
He is also seen meeting the affected people about their situation and the difficulties they are facing.
Speaking to ANI, he said his office had arranged some mattresses for those displaced by the flood. "But all of these are just urgent, immediate responses. We have to think in terms of long term as well," he said.
In an earlier post, Tharoor described his visit to devastated areas in Wayanad as "emotionally searing". "Picked my way through the rubble to view the destruction in the villages of Chooralmala, Mundakkai and Puncharimattam. Ground Zero was emotionally devastating - just imagining what it must have been like at 2 AM and 4 AM when families sleeping peacefully would have felt a fusillade of rocks and mud crashing into them, crushing their homes and their dreams," he wrote.
Made an emotionally searing visit to the areas devastated by the #WayanadLandslide. Picked my way through the rubble to view the destruction in the villages of Chooralmala, Mundakkai and Puncharimattam. Ground Zero was emotionally devastating – just imagining what it must have… pic.twitter.com/AZP8SfOrGa
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) August 3, 2024
However, in another post, he shared a video of his visit, and conversations with those affected sparked a row for its caption. "Some memories of a memorable day in Wayanad," it said.
Several people, including BJP leaders, questioned his choice of the word "memorable" for describing a tragedy such as this.
Senior BJP leader Amit Malviya, who heads the BJP's IT department, tweeted, "Deaths and disaster are memorable for Shashi Tharoor."
Deaths and disaster are memorable for Shashi Tharoor. https://t.co/40zjGW6c0b
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) August 3, 2024