Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, a Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, has been targeted by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for his “Rashtrapatni” statement. She claimed the comment was intended to offend newly elected President Droupadi Murmu. She called the Congressman’s clarification that it was a “slip of the tongue” a “deliberate sexist attack.”
A further demonstration, organised by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who has recently recovered from Covid, saw her standing on the Parliament grounds with fellow MPs holding signs criticising the comment. Ms Sitharaman, speaking in the lower house, termed it a “deliberate sexist attack” and requested that the Congress President apologise on behalf of the party.
“I want an apology from the President of the Congress Party, who, as a woman, has permitted her leader to speak in such a manner. Sonia Gandhi should apologise to the country for disrespecting the President “The finance minister stated in the Lok Sabha.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury quickly clarified, claiming it was a slip of the tongue and that the BJP is “creating a mountain out of a molehill.” He accused the BJP of diverting attention away from critical talks like price increases, GST, the Agnipath scheme, unemployment, and other issues.
“Whoever is the President of India, whether a Brahmin or an Adivasi, is the President for us. We appreciate the position. When we were protesting at Vijay Chowk yesterday, reporters asked us where we wanted to go. I told them I wanted to go to the President’s house. I only said “Rashtrapatni” once… The reporter repeated it to me, and I told him that I might have said it by accident, and that it would be best if they didn’t broadcast it. Because of this, they (the BJP) are causing a commotion. I just made one error, and it was in one word, “Mr. Chowdhury stated in a video message on his Twitter account.
