Congressman Shashi Tharoor denounced Union Minister V Muraleedharan over MP-LADS funds (File)
Thiruvananthapuram:
A war of words broke out on Twitter between Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan and Congressman Lok Sabha Shashi Tharoor over the dispersal of Rs 1 crore in MP-LADS funds towards the search for kits of COVID-19 test or their purchase.
The MP-LADS funds, suspended since April “for the management of health and the harmful effects of the epidemic of # COVID19 in the country”, are a fixed sum of 5 crore Rs allocated to each deputy each year to develop his constituency .
Mr. Muraleedharan, publishing the response to a request from RTI (right to information) on the request of Mr. Tharoor to give 1 crore of Rs to a medical research institute in his district of Thiruvananthapuram.
“RTI’s plea broke @INCKerala MP @ ShashiTharoor’s claim to donate the RL 1 Cr. MPLADS fund to @sctimst_tvm. They received neither the funds for R&D nor for the purchase of test kits. Stop #Lying! ” Muraleedharan tweeted, marking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Interior Minister Amit Shah and BJP President JP Nadda in his post.
Exploded RTI advocacy @INCKerala MP @ShashiTharoorrequest for donation of 1 Cr. MPLADS Fund for @sctimst_tvm. They received neither the funds for R&D nor for the purchase of test kits. Stop #Lie! @Narendra Modi@[email protected]/5FH3aAyroR
– V Muraleedharan (@VMBJP) July 1, 2020
Shashi Tharoor, who said in April that he “took advantage of my MP’s funds just before the government cut them,” replied in a series of tweets that struck the Union Minister and the accused of being “ashamed” and “lying”. “.
“It is quite shameful when a minister, who can easily verify the facts, lies by accusing an MP of lying. Please read the following thread and take up your invective,” wrote Shashi Tharoor.
1/8 A scurrilous tweet by a BJP MOS, @VMBJP , accusing me of “lying” about the donation of 1 cr to the Sree Chitra Thirunal Institute for Medical Sciences in Thiruvananthapuram, requests this detailed clarification. The grant was approved on March 30 before the Indian government suspended MPLADS funds. pic.twitter.com/txwOKhXbke
– Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) July 1, 2020
In his tweets, Tharoor explained the institute’s “strong history of revolutionary innovation” and the “caliber of its scientists” had encouraged him to donate in the first place.
Mr. Tharoor then clarified that the money was given as “finance for purchase” at the request of the district administration (which is the nodal agency for the distribution of MP-LADS funds).
“Why? The MP-LADS government’s own revised directives did not support development and therefore only the purchase could be authorized. Consequently, the allocation was made by letter of March 30 giving Rs 1 crore on the understanding that SCTIMST would get the funds once the kits have been developed, “said Tharoor.
“It’s simple, but since V Muraleedhran has tagged Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, maybe they can answer my next questions,” said the congress leader.
Shashi Tharoor then asked the Prime Minister and the Minister of the Interior why the test kits developed by two research institutes managed by the government – including the one to which he had donated his funds – still did not approval of the center.
Shashi Tharoor said he spent his MP funds to fund research efforts on new COVID-19 test kits
“On the other hand, private laboratories have seen their kits approved in a few days. Can you explain why our institutes have been waiting so long?” He asked.
Tharoor stressed that for its funds to be used wisely, test kits must be produced and made available for purchase and that this can only happen if the government supports “our institutes and approves their kits instead to sit on Twitter. “
“If the government’s argument is that the kits are not yet ready for production, then why is a government minister attacking me publicly for something that his government has delayed?” Mr. Tharoor asked
Striking at the BJP for its “shameful model” of not doing its job and then attacking the opposition, Mr. Tharoor criticized “the moronic tweet” of Mr. Muraleedhran and demanded that he apologize for his accusations “when I’m completely transparent”.
Shashi Tharoor ended his long thread with a question for Mr. Muraleedharan, asking if he or his colleagues could explain what happened to Rs 7,900 crore in MP-LAD funds.
