New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary, on Sunday, demanded an unconditional apology from Union Minister Smriti Irani for "disrespect" to President Droupadi Murmu by taking her name without using any prefix in her honour. The Congress MP wrote a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla demanding that Irani tender an "unconditional apology" to President Murmu, reported news agency ANI. "She was yelling 'Droupadi Murmu' repeatedly without prefixing Honourable President or Madam or Smt before the Honourable President's name. This clearly amounts to degrading the stature of the office of the Honourable President," Chowdhary stated in the letter.
"Therefore, I demand that Smt. Smriti Irani may tender unconditional apology to the Honourable President for her disrespectful remarks and for lowering the dignity and stature of the Honourable President's office." he further wrote in the letter.
Chowdhary has hit back at Irani a day after the latter had targeted him for his 'rashtrapatni' remark in connection with President Droupadi Murmu which caused a large-scale uproar by the Bharatiya Janata Party. Chowdhary had tendered his apology to President Murmu saying that it was a "slip of tongue" and requested her to accept his apology.
In the letter sent to Lok Sabha Speaker today, he reiterated that it was a slip of tongue.
"I wish to reiterate that it was becuase of a slip of tongue that the name of of our Honourable President Madam was dragged into unnecessary and unwarranted controversy. This inadvent mistake happened because I am not very good at Hindi. I have regretted my mistake and and apologised to the Honourable President," Chowdhary said.