New Delhi

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Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Saturday (Aug 3) provided a clarification about a recent social media post of his visit to landslide-hit Wayanad in the Indian state of Kerala. On Saturday, Tharoor visited areas in Wayanad that were devastated due to the landslide. The death toll due to the natural disaster has crossed 300 and 206 people are still reported to be missing with slim hopes of survival. 

In a post on X, Tharoor shared a video of him unloading relief material and meeting the displaced people in relief camps. "Some memories of a memorable day in Wayanad," the senior Congress leader wrote in the post.

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Speaking to the news agency ANI, Tharoor said, "Food and so on, is plentifully available in Wayanad but we were able to bring some mattresses, soft spongy things that you can spread out on the floor and lie on in order to help people."

The criticism of Tharoor's post

Tharoor faced criticism from X users for using the words "memorable day" in his post. "Meet elite MP Shashi Tharoor. He went to tragedy-hit Wayanad to have a "memorable" day," an X user said.

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"People losing lives is memorable for you? True Congressi," another user said. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) IT cell chief Amit Malviya wrote, "Deaths and disaster are memorable for Shashi Tharoor."

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Before this post, Tharoor described his visit to devastated areas in Wayanad as "emotionally searing."

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"Picked my way through the rubble to view the destruction in the villages of Chooralmala, Mundakkai and Puncharimattam. Ground Zero was emotionally devastating...," he said.

The clarification

Amid the backlash, Tharoor provided a clarification about his memorable day post. "For all the trolls: definition of “memorable”: Something that is memorable is worth remembering or likely to be remembered because it is special or unforgettable," Tharoor said.

"That's all I meant," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)