The manner in which the supreme leader of Congress Sonia Gandhi spoke about President Droupadi Murmu cannot be justified under any circumstances. Sonia Gandhi made the remark while speaking to her son Rahul Gandhi and daughter Priyanka Vadra outside Parliament. She said, “The poor lady, the President, was getting very tired by the end…she could hardly speak, poor thing”. Soon after, the video of this remark became viral on social media and also on news television. This triggered a furore with top BJP leaders demanding an apology for “insulting the first tribal President”.
The reaction from Rashtrapati Bhavan was swift and precise, without naming Sonia Gandhi. It said, “These leaders have said that the President was getting very tired by the end and she could hardly speak. Rashtrapati Bhavan would like to clarify that nothing could be farther from the truth…” The statement further said: ” The President’s office believes it might be the case that these leaders have not acquainted themselves with the idiom and discourse in Indian languages such as Hindi, and thus formed a wrong impression. In any case, such comments are in poor taste, unfortunate and entirely avoidable. It has clearly hurt the dignity of the high office and is unacceptable.”
To publicly describe the President of the Republic of India as a “poor lady” and “poor thing” is insulting. Droupadi Murmu hails from a poor tribal family and adorns the highest post of the land. To describe her as “poor thing, tired” is unfortunate. The issue is serious because the remark was part of a conversation between three persons hailing from the same family. The remark was not in reply to any pesky reporter’s question. The Gandhi-Nehru family has ruled India for decades and it understands the dignity of the post of President.
Sonia Gandhi, on her part, always chooses her words carefully while speaking. Except for one or two instances in the past, she never made any loose comment about anybody. But it seems, Rahul Gandhi wanted her mother to say something. Rahul Gandhi did not like the President’s address and said it was “boring”. Probably, he wanted her mother to say something about the government, but he forgot that it was the President who was placing the government’s views in her address.
In the past, Rahul Gandhi had been saying at public meetings how the Modi government did not invite President Droupadi Murmu to the Pran Pratistha (installation) ceremony at Ram Lala temple in Ayodhya. At several rallies, Rahul Gandhi had alleged that the President was not invited because she was a tribal. But the manner in which both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul spoke about the President and insulted the dignity of her office on Friday has let the cat out of the bag.
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