All was well at banquet, says Rashtrapati Bhavan

All was well at banquet, says Rashtrapati Bhavan

Responding to an HT report ‘Embarrassment of glitches marks US President’s tour’, the press secretary to the president, Venu Rajamony, clarified that “the food and service at the banquet hosted by President Pranab Mukherjee for the US President was much appreciated, especially by President Obama and Mrs Obama.”

“It is also completely incorrect to impute that glasses to raise a toast had to be rushed in as an afterthought. Staff with glasses on a tray were standing by the side, just outside the vision of the camera, waiting to serve them to both President Obama and President Mukherjee the moment their speeches came to an end. This requirement had been well prepared for and fully anticipated. President Obama’s request for a glass was a spontaneous remark prior to raising the toast,” the press secretary said in a letter.