Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, a member of Parliament of Congress from West Bengal had refereed to President of India Droupadi Murmu as ‘Rashtrapatni’. Droupadi Murmu is the first tribal president of India and the second woman President.
Chowdhury cited his calling Murmu the ‘Rashtrapatni’ to language barriers. “I am a Bengali, not used to Hindi; I made a mistake, I agree," Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said.
The President in Hindi is called 'Rashtrapati'.
Further Chowdhury accused the BJP of making a "mountain out of a molehill" when protests from BJP leaders in the parliament adjourned both houses twice till 2pm and 4 pm. He said referring to President Droupadi Murmu as 'rashtrapatni' was a "slip of the tongue".
Minister of Women and Child Development of India Smriti Irani, who recently had faced the heat of Opposition after reports emerged that her 18 year old daughter operated an illegal bar in South Goa, confronted Sonia Gandhi in the parliament , which furious Congress leaders said was an ‘attack on their party chief’.
The Congress needs to apologise in Parliament and on the streets of India, Smriti Irani said adding that despite being led by a woman, Sonia Gandhi, Congressmen continue to demean the women in constitutional posts.
The term was used only once by mistake and never intended any disrespect to the president, Chowdhury said as the BJP stalled both houses of Parliament and asked Congress president Sonia Gandhi to apologise to the nation.
“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 told reporters outside Parliament.
“"What should I do? I said it and realised I uttered a wrong word. I even looked for media persons who I had said this to. to request them to not focus on it. However, I couldn't find them," he added, a day after the remark.
Some ruling party members, the Congress leader added, are "deliberately trying to make a mountain out of a molehill".
There is no question of an apology, he stated.
In a video message later, he said India's president, be it Brahmin or tribal, is respected by all.
“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 my video where I committed a mistake. The BJP is creating a row over it now," he said.
According to Chowdhury, the BJP does not have anything on the party and is finding "masala" against it.
“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.
