The controversy over Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury's reference to India's President Droupadi Murmu "rashtrapatni" saw a face-off between Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Union Minister Smriti Irani in the Lok Sabha chamber on Thursday. After the Lok Sabha was adjourned at 12 noon, BJP MPs raised slogans and demanded an apology from Sonia Gandhi over Chowdhury's "rashtrapatni" remark.
Sonia Gandhi then walked across to the Treasury benches and sought to know from BJP member Rama Devi why she was being dragged into the issue as had Chowdhury had already apologised over the remark. "Why are you taking my name? You can't take my name," Sonia Gandhi told Rama Devi, according to ABP sources.
Smriti Irani waded into the conversation and asked Gandhi to apologise while gesturing towards her. However, the Congress President then turned around and said "don't talk to me" to Irani, ABP sources said.
NCP member Supriya Sule and Trinamool member Aparupa Poddar then escorted the Congress president away from the Treasury benches.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman claimed that Sonia Gandhi told a BJP member not to talk to her. However, the Sitharaman did not name any BJP leader.
Addressing reporters in Parliament premises, Sitharaman accused Gandhi of speaking in a "threatening tone" with BJP members. Sitharaman claimed that Gandhi told BJP members "you don't talk to me" when they only sought to know what was the issue being discussed.
"Instead of tendering an apology, she is misleading by claiming that Adhir Chowdhury has already apologised. Instead of an apology, she is resorting to threats," PTI quoted Sitharaman as saying.
"One of our members approached there and she (Sonia Gandhi) said you don't talk to me, putting the member down in the House. So instead of remorse, from the highest leader of the Congress party, we find greater and greater aggression," the Union minister said.
Gaurav Gogoi of the Congress claimed that Sonia Gandhi was brave, which is why she went to the female MPs, while the BJP MPs acted in an extremely impolite manner.
Congress leader and media in-charge Jairam Ramesh termed Irani's behaviour as "outrageous". "Atrocious and outrageous behaviour by Union Minister Smriti Irani in the Lok Sabha today! But will she be pulled up by the Speaker? Are rules only meant for the Opposition," Ramesh tweeted.
Former Union minister Milind Deora said he had never seen Gandhi being rude or impolite, even when provoked. "This is not the first time that she has been targeted personally and of late, unjustly, both inside & outside Parliament. She has and will always endure," Deora said on Twitter.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra, referring to Sonia Gandhi, said the 75-year-old leader was "encircled and heckled pack-wolf style". "Was in Lok Sabha when 75 year old lady senior leader encircled & heckled pack-wolf style when all she did was walk over & speak (masked) to another senior lady panel chairperson. Disgusted to read BJP lies and false version in press," Moitra tweeted.
Here's What Congress Said:
Here's What BJP Said: