Shashi Tharoor condemns Assam minister’s ‘gobi farming’ tweet
Guwahati: Assam minister Ashok Singhal’s social media post on “Bihar approves Gobi farming” has triggered a major political controversy, with opposition leaders alleging that the remark appeared to glorify the 1989 Bhagalpur massacre in Bihar, where many Muslims were killed.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor condemned the post on Sunday, November 16, 2025, stating that neither Hinduism nor Indian nationalism justifies such acts of violence.
Singhal posted the controversial message on X on Friday, November 14, 2025, alongside a photograph of a cauliflower field, following the NDA’s victory in the Bihar Assembly polls.
The image immediately sparked backlash online, as critics linked it to the Bhagalpur violence, where 116 Muslims were killed, and perpetrators allegedly buried their bodies under cauliflower plantations to hide evidence.
One X user accused Singhal of “glorifying the massacre of 116 Muslims to celebrate an election victory” and tagged Tharoor, urging him to mobilize Hindu leaders to condemn what they called the “normalisation of one of the worst pogroms against Bihari Muslims.”
Responding to the criticism, Tharoor clarified, “I’m not a community organiser, so joint statements are not my job. But as a passionate advocate of #InclusiveIndia and a proud Hindu, I can speak for myself and most Hindus I know: our faith and nationalism neither require, justify, nor condone such massacres, let alone applaud them.”
When another user questioned whether he had condemned the post, Tharoor reiterated, “That's exactly what I did! I condemned it.”
Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi also weighed in on Saturday, November 15, 2025, describing the use of the “gobi farming” imagery by a sitting Assam Cabinet Minister as a “shocking new low in political discourse.”
Also read: Gaurav Gogoi denounces Assam minister controversial ‘gobi farming’ comment
TMC MP Saket Gokhale also condemned the post, explaining that “‘Gobi farming’ refers to glorifying the mass killing of Muslims in Bhagalpur in 1989. A cauliflower farm was planted on the graves to hide evidence. This comes from a BJP Minister in Assam, not a fringe element.” He further claimed that the Prime Minister’s office implicitly approved the post, warning that “the world should know.”
The controversy has sparked widespread debate over political ethics, social media responsibility, and the invocation of historical tragedies in contemporary political discourse.