Remark insults not just President but poor, tribals: PM Modi slams Sonia Gandhi's 'poor thing' comment

At an election rally in Delhi's Dwarka, PM Modi said the Congress family's "arrogance was on full display today".

"President Droupadi Murmu addressed parliament. But a member of the royal family said the language was boring. One member said her language seemed tiring... Urban Naxals' words are more interesting to the royal family," PM Modi said.

"Urban Naxal" is a term often used by BJP leaders and rightwing organisations to describe Opposition leaders and activists as they refer to them as city versions of guerillas who fight in the forests.

"Both the Congress and AAP display arrogance. The AAP acts as if they own Delhi, while the Congress family's arrogance was on full display today. Sonia Gandhi's comments were totally inappropriate, calling President Droupadi Murmu 'a poor thing' after saying she looked tired and gave a boring speech. This remark insults not just the President but also every poor and tribal community," PM Modi said at the rally.

The Indian President's Office earlier in the day criticised Sonia Gandhi's ‘poor thing’ remark and said it 'hurt the dignity' of the high office.

"While reacting to the media on the Hon’ble President’s Address to the Parliament, some prominent leaders of the Congress party have made comments that clearly hurt the dignity of the high office, and therefore are unacceptable. These leaders have said that the President was getting very tired by the end and she could hardly speak," the Rashtraparti Bhavan said in a statement.

"Rashtrapati Bhavan would like to clarify that nothing could be farther from the truth. The President was not tired at any point. Indeed, she has believed that speaking up for the marginalized communities, for women and farmers, as she was doing during the course of her address, can never be tiring," the statement said.

"The President’s office believes it might be the case that these leaders have not acquainted themselves with the idiom and discourse in Indian languages such as Hindi, and thus formed a wrong impression," the statement said.

The office said the comments are in 'poor taste, unfortunate and entirely avoidable'.

What did Sonia Gandhi say?

Congress MP Sonia Gandhi's reference to president Droupadi Murmu as a "poor thing" has stirred a massive row with strong condemnation from the ruling party members heating up the political battle right on day one of parliament's budget session.

Reacting to Murmu's address to the joint sitting of parliament, Sonia said, "The poor lady. The president was getting very tired by the end... No, she could hardly speak the poor thing." (sic)

Sonia was accompanied by her children, Congress MPs Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra while making the comment.