President wasn't tired: Office condemns Sonia Gandhi's 'poor thing' comment

Rashtrapati Bhavan said the remarks by Sonia Gandhi on President ​Droupadi Murmu were in 'poor taste' and 'unfortunate'. The Congress MP's remarks have ignited a firestorm, with BJP seeking an apology from her.

In Short

• Rashtrapati Bhavan says Sonia Gandhi's remarks in poor taste, unfortunate
• Says speaking up for the marginalised can never be tiring
• Sonia Gandhi says President was getting tired during Budget speech

In a scathing counter to Sonia Gandhi's "poor thing" remark about the President, Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday said the comments by the Congress MP were in "poor taste" and "unfortunate". In a statement, the press secretary to the President said Droupadi Murmu, 66, was "not tired at any point" during her hour-long address to kick off the Budget session of Parliament.

The statement said the remarks hurt the dignity of the President's office and were "further from the truth". "The President was not tired at any point. Indeed, she believed that speaking up for the marginalised communities, for women and farmers, as she was doing during the course of her address, can never be tiring," Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

Without naming anyone, the statement said the "leaders" formed a wrong impression as they might have not acquainted themselves with the idiom and discourse in Indian languages such as Hindi.

WHAT SONIA GANDHI SAID?

The former Congress chief sparked a row on the first day of the Budget session by saying that the President was "getting very tired" during her speech, while her son, Rahul Gandhi, called the address "boring".

"The President was getting very tired by the end... She could hardly speak, poor thing," Sonia was heard telling Rahul, even though her remark was very audible to the bevy of reporters surrounding her.

The BJP went all guns blazing in attacking the Congress and sought an unconditional apology from Sonia Gandhi. BJP IT department head Amit Malviya said Sonia's remark demeaned the high office and reflected her feudal mindset.

Union Minister JP Nadda said the remark laid bare the "elitist, anti-poor and anti-tribal nature" of the Congress. "I demand that the Congress party unconditionally apologise to the President and the tribal communities of India," he tweeted.

Defending her mother, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi said she had the utmost respect for the President. "They (the BJP) should first apologise for ruining the country... It is unfortunate her remark was twisted," Priyanka said.