'I was reluctant to express my views on FB, as you know, but since this has become an open topic of discussion, here is my two cents worth. 

Endorsing a candidate -- notwithstanding the (questionable) virtues you attribute to him -- who represents the dark forces of bigotry, hatred and communalism, is betraying everything you may have stood for during your illustrious career.  Your differences with Shashi Tharoor cannot be conflated with your decision.  The real issue here is whether an erudite, well-travelled person like you with a career that took you through the citadels of liberal thought and variegated views can stoop to the level of endorsing someone representing the odious ideology of majoritarianism, exclusion, religious hatred, fundamentalism and retrogression, and a follower of the most coarse, crass and divisive Prime Minister in independent India's history. When the country faces almost an existentialist threat to its secular fabric and its Constitution, your change of stance is likely to be interpreted by many as an opportunistic move, like selling one's soul, a Faustian bargain with the Devil for some future gain.No wonder many people seem to be asking: "Et tu, Sreeni?" '