Sorry, writes Congress MP to Droupadi Murmu

New Delhi: Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Friday tendered a written apology to President Droupadi Murmu for his 'rashtrapatni' remark, a day after a political storm erupted over it. In his letter to the President, he said he mistakenly used an incorrect word for her and it was a slip of tongue.

"I am writing to express my regret for having mistakenly used an incorrect word to describe the position you hold. I assure you that it was a slip of the tongue. I apologise and request you to accept the same," Chowdhury said in his letter to the President.

While talking to reporters during a protest at Vijay chowk on Wednesday, Chowdhury had used the word 'rashtrapatni" for President Murmu, that created a major political row with the ruling BJP raising the issue in Parliament, demanding an apology from him and Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

With the BJP launching a massive offensive against him and Gandhi, Chowdhury said he had sought time from President Murmu and he would apologise to her personally and not to "pakhandis" (hypocrites) of the BJP. However, it was not clear whether the President had given him time.

Proceedings in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have been disrupted for the second day in a row over the remark and BJP leaders have been saying that Chowdhury would have to apologise.

The row also led to a face-off in Lok Sabha between Gandhi and Union minister Smriti Irani following which the Congress leaders accused BJP MPs including Irani of subjecting its chief to "brutal heckling, verbal assault and physical intimidation" in the lower house.