Congress MP Dr. Shashi Tharoor concluded his participation at the Jaipur Literature Festival's Belfast edition on Sunday, 25 May 2026, with a final session at 1 pm local time — a conversation on the changing state of the world — before departing for Delhi. The Thiruvananthapuram MP also reflected on the political murals of Belfast, describing the 'solidarity of resistance' as a universal language.

Context

Tharoor posted from Belfast noting that his concluding JLF event was a discussion on how the global order is shifting. He also drew attention to the city's iconic political murals — visual testaments to Northern Ireland's decades of conflict and reconciliation — observing that they carried messages resonant far beyond the island of Ireland. 'The world wasn't absent from the Irish murals we saw yesterday — the solidarity of resistance speaks a universal language,' he wrote.

Belfast's murals, particularly those in the Falls Road and Shankill Road areas, have long depicted not only local Troubles-era imagery but also expressions of solidarity with global resistance movements, from Palestine to South Africa. Tharoor's framing situates these works within a broader conversation about international solidarity and the politics of resistance.

Policy Backdrop

Tharoor has consistently used international literary and cultural platforms to articulate positions on global affairs and India's place in a multipolar world. His 2012 book Pax Indica laid out a framework for India's engagement with a shifting world order, and his appearances at global forums have extended that intellectual project beyond Parliament.

The Jaipur Literature Festival, founded in 2006, has grown into one of the world's largest free literary gatherings, with international editions that bring together writers, policymakers, and public intellectuals. Its Belfast edition places Indian voices in dialogue with European and global perspectives at a time when questions of sovereignty, resistance, and multilateralism are acutely debated.

Stakeholders and Impact

For the Indian diaspora in the United Kingdom and the broader literary community, Tharoor's presence at such forums reinforces the role of Indian parliamentarians as participants in global intellectual discourse. His commentary on Belfast's murals is likely to resonate with audiences attentive to postcolonial solidarity narratives and cultural diplomacy.

The session's theme — the changing state of the world — touches on issues including geopolitical realignment, the erosion of multilateral institutions, and the rise of nationalist movements, all subjects on which Tharoor has written and spoken extensively. The specific content of the conversation, however, has not been independently detailed.

What's Next

With his Belfast engagements complete, Tharoor is returning to Delhi, where Parliament's monsoon session will bring renewed focus to India's foreign policy positions and domestic legislative agenda. His international observations on resistance, solidarity, and the global order may well find an echo in his parliamentary interventions in the weeks ahead.