Shashi Tharoor

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		Shashi Tharoor, a four-time Parliamentarian, is a prominent Congress politician and serves as a Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram constituency of Kerala.</div>
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		Tharoor gained international attention for his participation in a debate at Oxford where he argued that Britain should pay reparations to its former colonies. He has authored numerous books, both fiction and non-fiction. He is also popular for his vast vocabulary and his use of lesser-known words that create social media trends from time to time.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</div>
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		<strong>Early life</strong></div>
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		Born on March 9, 1956, in London to Chandran Tharoor and Sulekha Menon, Shashi Tharoor spent his childhood in India.</div>
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		Before joining politics, Tharoor had a stint at the United Nations, where he spent nearly three decades working in various capacities. From handling key responsibilities in peace-keeping after the Cold War to serving as senior advisor to the Secretary-General and then rising to the position of Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, he evolved into a seasoned diplomat.</div>
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		<strong>Education</strong></div>
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		He attended schools in Mumbai and Kolkata. He graduated from St Stephen&#39;s College in Delhi. He pursued higher education at Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in the US, where he earned a Master&#39;s degree and a PhD in International Affairs.</div>
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		<strong>Political journey</strong></div>
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		In 2009, he won the Lok Sabha seat from Thiruvananthapuram, representing the Congress party, despite significant opposition from within the party&#39;s Kerala wing. He was appointed Minister of State for External Affairs in the Manmohan Singh Cabinet during the United Progressive Alliance I (UPA I) government. Tharoor was re-elected from Thiruvananthapuram in 2014. He won his third successive election from Thiruvananthapuram during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and again in 2024 after defeating his rival, the BJP&#39;s Rajeev Chandrasekhar by 16,077 votes.</div>
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		<strong>Controversies</strong></div>
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		Tharoor has been involved in several controversies, including issues related to sweat equity in an Indian Premier League (IPL) team. Tharoor faced a massive controversy after his wife Sunanda Pushkar was found dead in a Delhi hotel in 2014. Four years later, in 2018, the police charged him with abetment to suicide. The three-time MP was cleared of all charges in August 2021.</div>
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		When Pranab Mukherjee initiated an austerity drive during UPA I, the former diplomat was found staying in a 5-star hotel for weeks. On Twitter, he ruffled feathers when he said he &quot;would travel cattle class out of solidarity with all our holy cows&quot;.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div>
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Shashi Tharoor, a three-time Parliamentarian, is a prominent Congress politician and serves as a Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram constituency of Kerala. Get all the information, photos, videos and more on Shashi Tharoor at Business Standard.

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