At least three first information reports (FIRs) were lodged by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers in Odisha against West Bengal’s Trinamul Congress (TMC) minister Akhil Giri in different police stations over his controversial remarks on President Droupadi Murmu.
In a video, the TMC leader, addressing a public rally at Nandigram in West Bengal, was heard saying, “He (Suvendu Adhikari) says I (Akhil Giri) am not good-looking. How beautiful he is! We don’t judge people by their looks. We respect the chair of your President. How does your Rashtrapati look?” HT cannot verify the authenticity of the video clip.
BJP leaders lodged FIRs against Giri at Capital police station of Bhubaneswar, Sundargarh Town police and Talasara police station of Sundargarh district. In Nayagarh town, BJP workers burnt effigy of Giri for his objectionable statements.
“Who gave Giri the right to mock the President for her looks. Lord Jagannath himself is shaded dark. Thousands of people from Bengal come to Puri every month to worship the Lord. Besides, it is not as if Giri’s leader Mamata Banerjee is some epitome of beauty. Giri should be immediately expelled from the Bengal Cabinet for his distasteful remarks,” said BJP MLA Kusum Tete, who was among those who lodged FIRs.
Lashing out at the Trinamool Congress, senior Congress MLA Suresh Routray said every citizen of the country as well as every Odia are deeply hurt by the statement of West Bengal minister Akhil Giri against President Murmu.
{{/usCountry}}Lashing out at the Trinamool Congress, senior Congress MLA Suresh Routray said every citizen of the country as well as every Odia are deeply hurt by the statement of West Bengal minister Akhil Giri against President Murmu.
{{/usCountry}}“She is an honest and highly educated woman. Once she was a legislator, she then became governor of Jharkhand and now she is our President. Using derogatory remarks against our President is really objectionable. The minister has used derogatory remarks against the President just because she is of black complexion. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee is also not of fair complexion. Then she should not be the chief minister of West Bengal. Akhil Giri should resign from the ministerial berth. He should be arrested soon,” said Routray.
Condemning the remarks of Giri, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Rajya Sabha MP Munna Khan said no one has rights to use such words for the President of India, especially when she belongs to a tribal community. “She is the daughter of Odisha. Stringent action should be taken against such a person. He is not eligible to be a minister. He should be suspended from the party without further delay,” demanded Khan.
Apologising for his remark, Giri said, “Just like I have respect for the country’s constitution, I also respect the President of India, who is the Head of the State. I also work as per the constitution of the country. But for the last few days, the kind of remarks made by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari against me and my looks has left me humiliated and fuming. I am an old man, and by mistake, I have made a remark out of emotional outbursts of my anger. I regret making such a remark,” he said, according to news agency PTI.
TMC national spokesperson Saket Gokhale in a post on Twitter said, “Our party strongly condemns the unfortunate remarks made by MLA @AkhilGiriAITC and clarifies that we do not condone such statements. In the era of women’s empowerment, such misogyny is unacceptable.”