“You Know What Happened to Me… Beware of Revenge”: BJP Leader Warns Shashi Tharoor After Anti-Dynasty Remark

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Shahzad Poonawalla Says Congress’ ‘First Family’ is Known for Taking Revenge

New Delhi, November 3, 2025

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s sharp criticism of dynastic politics has stirred a political storm, drawing both praise and warnings — including one from BJP spokesperson Shahzad Poonawalla, who cautioned him that the Gandhi family “takes revenge.”

Tharoor, in his article published in Project Syndicate titled “Indian Politics Are a Family Business”, described dynasty-driven politics as a major threat to Indian democracy, asserting that when political power is determined by family lineage instead of merit or public service, the quality of governance deteriorates. His remarks were widely interpreted as an indirect attack on Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s leadership within the Congress.

Reacting to the piece, BJP’s Shahzad Poonawalla — himself a former Congress leader — posted on X, saying:

“Dr. Tharoor’s article is sharp and bold. I don’t know what consequences he might face for speaking so frankly. He has already been targeted earlier for questioning the surrender narrative around ‘nepo kid’ Rahul Gandhi. The First Family is very revengeful.”

Poonawalla added, “Dr. Tharoor has now become a ‘khilari of danger’. He directly called out the ‘nepo kids’ and dynastic nawabs. Sir, when I called Rahul Gandhi ‘nepo naamdaar’ in 2017, you know what happened to me. I’m praying for you — the First Family does not forgive easily.”

Poonawalla had made headlines in 2017 when he criticized the Congress’ internal elections as a sham, after which he distanced himself from the party. That same election cycle saw Rahul Gandhi succeed Sonia Gandhi as Congress President.

In his article, Tharoor went beyond the Congress and also mentioned parties like the Samajwadi Party, DMK, TMC, and National Conference, writing that “when the main qualification of a candidate becomes his or her surname, democracy loses its essence.”

Tharoor’s critique has once again exposed the uneasy fault lines within the Congress — between its intellectual reformists and the loyalists of the Gandhi family — while giving BJP leaders fresh ammunition to target the opposition over dynastic politics.