Former Union minister Shashi Tharoor sparked a rage after he said that India will turn into a 'Hindu Pakistan' if BJP is brought back to power in 2019. The Congress on Thursday advised him and its leaders to "exercise restraint, caution and choose their words and statements wisely".

Tharoor made these comments at a gathering in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Tharoor reportedly said, "If they (BJP) are able to win a repeat of their current strength in the Lok Sabha, then frankly our democratic constitution as we understand will not survive because they will have all the three elements they need to tear up the Constitution of India and write a new one. That will be a new one, which will enshrine the principle of Hindu Rashtra, will remove equality for minorities, that will create a Hindu Pakistan and that isn't what Mahatma Gandhi, (Jawaharlal) Nehru, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad and great heroes of freedom struggle fought for."

The Congress has decided to keep itself away from the remarks and has strongly advised its leaders to refrain from making such comments. The Hindustan Times quoted Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill as saying, “We appeal (to) our leaders and workers to exercise restraint, caution, and carefully choose their words and statements. And we should remember that our party stands for a pluralistic multi-cultural, multi-faith society. That makes us different from the BJP.”