‘Rashtrapatni’ row: A look at Adhir Chowdhury’s past controversial statements

Congress leader and Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was embroiled in a controversy on Thursday over his ‘Rashtrapatni’ remark that led to a verbal duel in Parliament between the BJP and Congress

Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was embroiled in a controversy on Thursday over his ‘Rashtrapatni’ remark that led to a verbal duel in Parliament between the BJP and Congress.

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has been at the end of criticism for his statements in the past too. (File image)

BJP accused the Congress party of “demeaning” the president and demanded an apology.

However, Chowdhury claimed the remark was a ‘slip of tongue’ but nobody bought his side of the argument.

Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned multiple times amid the uproar over Chowdhury’s statement.

This is not the first time Chowdhury was at the receiving end of criticism over his controversial statements.

Here’s a look at his past statements that hogged the limelight for the wrong reasons:

- In 2019, giving the ‘Motion of Thanks’ to the President’s address in Lok Sabha, the Congress leader drew comparisons between Indira Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said, “Kaha maa Ganga, kaha gandi naali”. Enraged BJP leaders expressed their anger on Twitter and party president JP Nadda said, “the Congress is consistently insulting the Prime Minister who has been elected by 125 crore people… Their arrogance will finish them”. Explaining himself, Chowdhury said his Hindi is “not good” and he meant ‘nalli’ (channel).

- During the winter session of Parliament in 2019, the Baharampur MP contorted union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s name and called her ‘Nirbala’, meaning, weak. Hitting out at the Congress leader, Sitharaman said women are sablas (empowered) under the government led my PM Narendra Modi.

- On May 21, 2022, on the death anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Chowdhury tweeted, “When a big tree falls, the ground shakes,” and later deleted it. This statement was reportedly made by Rajiv Gandhi when anti-Sikh riots broke out after the assassination of his mother, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984. Reacting to the tweet, BJP leader Amit Malviya said, “Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has decided to call a spade a spade. Gandhis be damned.”

Clarifying the situation, the Congress leader told HT that his Twitter handle was hacked and that he will file a complaint with the police in Kolkata.

- Not only BJP, the leader has earned a dubious reputation of even taking jibes at his own party members. In March this year, Chowdhury reportedly took a sly dig at the party’s internal rebel G23 member Kapil Sibal. He said, “I don’t know who Kapil Sibal is. He got many advancements because of Congress… He (Sibal) should set an example that he can do something without the support of Congress, fight for his ideology on their own…”