The speech of President Draupadi Murmu at the joint session of Parliament has given rise to a political controversy when Sonia Gandhi reacted to it. Sonia Gandhi stated that by the time the speech ended, the President looked tired and was not able to continue speaking; she even referred to her as "poor thing." Sonia Gandhi criticized the speech, saying that it was full of false promises and that the issues faced by the people were not even mentioned.
In response, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) condemned Sonia's remarks, saying that she was disrespecting the President's position and reflected a feudal mindset. The President's office also responded, calling some Congress leaders' comments unfortunate and entirely avoidable. The statement from the President's office said that the remarks were an affront to the dignity of the office of the President and a breach of decorum.
The office of the President clarified that the President never showed fatigue during the speech. On the contrary, the President feels that speaking to the marginalized communities, to women, and to farmers is not a tiring affair.
The words of Sonia attracted criticism from another corner, in the form of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said that such words were offending the poor and the tribals. He quoted that the word "urban Naxals" seems to please the royal members more than what the President was using.
BJP President J.P. Nadda wanted Sonia Gandhi to apologize for making such a statement, which accused Congress of possessing a negative mentality towards the poor and the indigenous people. Meanwhile, Priyanka Gandhi, the daughter and Member of Parliament of Sonia Gandhi defended her mother stating that the media had distorted her words. According to Priyanka, her 78-year-old mother had simply said that it was easy to say the President may have been tired after making such a long speech. She added that her family holds the President in full respect and the interpretation of the words by media was unfortunate. Priyanka further suggested that the BJP should apologize for turning the matter into a controversy.