Kerala: Former UN under-secretary general Shashi Tharoor showed disrespect to the national anthem by interrupting when it was being sung at an event in Kerala last month, a human rights group alleged on Monday and said that it would move court against him.

"Tharoor insulted our national anthem in the presence of the district collector and some senior civil service officials in a function at a hotel in Kochi on December 16," Joy Kaitharam, general secretary of the State Human Rights Protection Centre, said.

"We are going to file a case against Tharoor for interrupting the national anthem for 10 seconds. Tharoor urged the audience not to stand in attention as it is an imitation of the British style and instead asked them to place their hand on chest and look upward," Kaitharam said.

Tharoor could not be contacted, but BS Jacob, an aide, said: "Tharoor only told the audience that when we sing our anthem, we should do so from the bottom of the heart. He requested them to place their hand on the chest."
Source : Central