Ever tried putting a lion on leash, it breaks: Manish Tewari

New Delhi, July 13: Congress MP Manish Tewari on Wednesday put out a cryptic tweet, saying only one thing happens in trying to put a lion on a leash which is that the leash breaks.

The remark comes days after Tewari took a divergent view than the party's line on the Agnipath scheme issue.

"Ever tried putting a lion on a leash. Only one thing happens the leash breaks!" Tewari tweeted. Tewari's cryptic tweet about trying to put a lion on a leash also comes amid a controversy over the newly-unveiled cast atop the new Parliament building with the opposition accusing the government of insulting the symbol by giving it a "ferocious" look.

The BJP has dismissed the criticism. Earlier, responding to an article titled 'Manish Tewari is being called 'Subramanian Swamy of Congress', the Lok Sabha member said on Twitter, "The gentleman who 'plants' this drivel should know @Swamy39 if nothing else is a formidable opponent."

On Monday, Tewari as part of the Consultative Committee on Defence did not sign a statement by six opposition MPs, seeking withdrawal of the Agnipath scheme.

The hand-written note by Shaktisinh Gohil, Rajani Patil (both Congress), Supriya Sule (NCP), Saugata Roy, Sudip Bandyopadhyay (both TMC) and A D Singh (RJD) was presented to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh after he made a presentation before the members of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Defence.

Sources had said Tewari, who has publicly lauded the Agnipath scheme and termed it as a much-needed reform in the armed forces, has taken a stand contrary to that of his party.

The Congress has termed Tewari's remarks as his personal views that do not reflect the party's stand. While the Congress has opposed the Agnipath recruitment scheme in armed forces, Tewari has said it is the need of the hour, as many other militaries of other countries have done something similar. The sources had also said Tewari asked at the meeting whether the scheme in any manner impacts the pension bill.

He had also asked if it reduces the operational readiness of armed forces at the cutting-edge level, the sources said, adding that the Army chief responded to this by saying the operational readiness will not be compromised at any level.

Tewari has held the view that such a measure for "right-sizing" of the armed forces is much-needed reform and has been accepted globally by many countries. Tewari has been a member of the G23 grouping of the Congress which had sought organisational overhaul and has been critical of some of the decisions of the party leadership.

He is a former union minister and is currently a Lok Sabha member representing the Anandpur Sahib constituency in Punjab.