Tripura Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ratan Lal Nath criticised Leader of the Opposition Jitendra Chaudhury on Tuesday for his remark that “the taller one is, the dumber one is” and demanded the CPM MLA apologise for allegedly body-shaming tall people.
“He directly insulted tall people. He should apologise in public if he made the statement in sound condition. Or else, I will ask his party leaders to arrange for his immediate treatment,” said Lal, a senior leader.
Chaudhury’s remark, made during a political gathering at Harina in South Tripura on Monday, touched a raw nerve with the ruling BJP, given that the party’s MP Biplab Kumar Deb, who is tall and a fitness enthusiast, would often face sharp jibes from the CPM over some of his controversial comments when he was the chief minister.
The Leader of the Opposition did not name anyone, though.
Reacting to Chaudhury’s remark, Lal cited the examples of several eminent people such as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Rabindranath Tagore, Satyajit Ray, Bengali actor Soumitra Chattopadhyay, wrestler Satpal Singh, , cricketer , Odisha’s former chief minister Biju Patnaik, and Tripura’s longest-serving chief minister Manik Sarkar.
The BJP minister said Chaudhury insulted all these people with his remark and that he implied they were not intelligent.
Lal further said Chaudhury was dropped from former chief minister Sarkar’s cabinet over his alleged involvement in a ginger scam that took place during Left Front rule, adding that a file had been maintained documenting the CPM leader’s alleged misdeeds.
