New Delhi, Jan 31: "Far more dangerous than Omicron is 'O Mitron'," senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said on Monday in an apparent swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as he flagged "increased polarisation" and the "weakening of democracy".
Tharoor has been attacking the government, alleging that it is indulging in divisive rhetoric and spreading hatred.
"Far more dangerous than Omicron is 'O Mitron'! We are measuring the consequences of the latter every day in increased polarisation, promotion of hatred & bigotry, insidious assaults on the Constitution & the weakening of our democracy," the former Union minister said in a tweet.
"There is no 'milder variant' of this virus," he added.
"Mitron", which means friends, is a term seen to be associated with Modi, who has used it in his speeches in the past.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala slammed Tharoor for the jibe and asked whether the Congress can keep the COVID-19 pandemic above politics.
"Can Congress keep pandemic above politics? First Congress spread vaccine hesitancy & now it says Omicron isn't dangerous -- at beginning of Covid 19 Akhilesh said CAA is more dangerous than Covid. Do these people have no sense of responsibility?" he tweeted.
Tharoor has been attacking the government over the issue of polarisation. On January 29, the Thiruvananthapuram MP had shared a video of Yogi Adityanath and accused him of polarisation, saying the Uttar Pradesh chief minister had no idea how much damage he had caused to the country.
Far more dangerous than #Omicron is “O Mitron”! We are measuring the consequences of the latter every day in increased polarisation, promotion of hatred & bigotry, insidious assaults on the Constitution & the weakening of our democracy. There is no “milder variant” of this virus.
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) January 31, 2022
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Kolkata (PTI): Finn Allen blasted a 35-ball 93, while Angkrish Raghuvanshi hit an unbeaten 44-ball 82 as Kolkata Knight Riders kept their playoff hopes alive with a 29-run win over Gujarat Titans in the IPL match here on Saturday.
Sent in to bat, Allen went on a six-hitting spree, smashing 10 maximums and four boundaries to add 95 off 41 balls with Raghuvanshi (82).
Raghuvanshi then shared another 108 off 53 balls with Cameron Green (52 not out) to power KKR to a challenging 247 for 2.
In reply, GT could manage 218-4, riding on skipper Shubman Gill's 49-ball 85 and a 35-ball 57 from Jos Buttler. Opener Sai Sudarsan was retired hurt but returned to make a 28-ball 53 not out.
Sunil Narine (2/29) claimed two wickets and Saurabh Dubey snapped one for KKR.
For GT, Mohammed Siraj (1/50), Sai Kishore (1/38) were the wicket-takers.
Brief Score:
KKR: 247 for 2 in 20 overs (Finn Allen 93, Angkrish Raghuvanshi 82 not out, Camero Green 52 not out; Mohammed Siraj 1/50).
GT: 218 for 4 in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 85, Sunil Narine 2/29).
