L The Congress MP has found himself in hot water over his ‘rashtrapatni’ remark about President Droupadi Murmu.
New Delhi: Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury,Congress MP who got into trouble for calling the President a “rashtrapatni,” said he would apologise to President Droupadi Murmu but not to the “pakhandi (fraud)” BJP MPs who had objected to his apparent “slip of the tongue.”
It was a slip of tongue,” the Congress leader said in his defense, adding, “I am a Bengali and not used to Hindi. I have made a mistake.”
Chowdhury then jabbed at BJP too, and listed all the instances in which a saffron party official had disrespected, including Sonia Gandhi.
“What is said about Sonia Gandhi during elections? What is said about Shashi Tharoor’s wife? Inside Parliament, how did they speak about Renuka Chowdhury?” he told reporters.
“I have myself sought time from the President. I might get time to meet her the day after. If we meet, I will personally speak with her. And if I have hurt her sentiments, I will apologise to her. But not to these pankhandis (frauds) who are trying to teach me,” the veteran politician said.
“These are all pakhandis. They are experts at insulting women. They have insulted women one after the other. Should I remind you about them?”
“They are shedding crocodile tears for the tribals now. In India, during Modi ji’s regime, tribals have suffered the most. Go and check the facts. See the condition of the country,”he added.
Strong protests over Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s “rashtrapatni” comment, which has since snowballed into a major political crisis, were witnessed in the Lok Sabha this morning.
“Yesterday, when we were holding a protest at Vijay Chowk, journalists asked where we wanted to go. I said “rashtrapatni” only once by mistake. I urged the journalists not to show the part of the video where I made the mistake. The BJP is now creating a row over it,” he said, reported news agency PTI.
“I inadvertently used the word ‘rashtrapatni’ just once and it was a slip of the tongue. I never meant any disrespect to the President,” he said.
“The issue is being blown out of proportion. I do not have the remotest intention of humiliating the highest chair of our country,” Chowdhury said.
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