NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader and MP Shashi Tharoor avoided media questions on Operation Sindoor on Monday, responding with just one word — “Maunvrat, Maunvrat” — as he entered Parliament, signalling his refusal to comment.His reaction came ahead of a scheduled 16-hour-long Lok Sabha debate on Operation Sindoor, as announced by the parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju.Tharoor’s silence carries weight. The Thiruvananthapuram MP was selected by the BJP-led Centre to represent India’s position on terrorism and counterterrorism in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 people. Under Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7, India struck key terror camps in Pakistan. Tharoor led the diplomatic delegation to the United States and several countries across the Americas to garner international support.However, Tharoor’s strong backing of the government’s stance sparked friction within the Congress party. His public alignment with Operation Sindoor led to internal criticism and pushback from the party high command, further intensified by his cryptic social media posts seen as indirect jabs.Now, questions linger over whether the Congress will allow Tharoor to speak in today’s debate. His outspoken endorsement of the Centre’s action post-Pahalgam has deepened the rift with party leadership, casting uncertainty on his role in the discussion.