Sonia Gandhi has utmost respect for President, remarks twisted by media: Priyanka Gandhi
New Delhi (PTI): Amid a row over former Congress president Sonia Gandhi's reaction on President Droupadi Murmu's address, party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday said her mother has the utmost respect for the President and that it is very unfortunate that her remarks have been "twisted by the media".
She also hit out at the BJP's demand for an apology over the issue, saying it should first apologise for "ruining the country".
"My mother is a 78-year-old lady. She simply said that 'the President must have been tired reading such a long speech, poor thing'. She fully respects, in fact she has the utmost respect for her (the President). It is very unfortunate that this kind of a thing is twisted by the media," Priyanka Gandhi told reporters here.
"They are both respected people, they are older than us, they are at a certain age now and it is pretty clear that she (Sonia Gandhi) means no disrespect," the Congress MP said while exiting the Parliament House complex after attending a committee meeting.
Earlier, Congress' deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi also hit out at the BJP over its criticism on the issue.
"Smt. Sonia Gandhi's empathy for Hon'ble President Droupadi Murmu ji's health cannot be digested by the men in BJP. Every person in India has respect and empathy for the President," he said on X.
"Will the BJP answer for the disrespect shown to President Murmu when she was not invited to the inauguration of the Parliament or the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya? I challenge them to answer this question," Gogoi said.
Earlier, the BJP launched an all-out attack on the Congress over Sonia Gandhi's remarks, saying they were "deeply disrespectful" and also underscored the opposition's "continued disregard" for the dignity of the highest constitutional office.
Soon after the President delivered her address to a joint sitting of Parliament, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were seen discussing the speech in the Parliament complex.
"The poor lady, the President, was getting very tired by the end... she could hardly speak, poor thing," Sonia Gandhi was purportedly heard saying in a video doing the rounds on social media.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Trump says EU has until July 4 to approve last year's trade deal or it will face higher tariffs
Washington (AP): President Donald Trump has said in a social media post that goods from the European Union would face higher tariff rates if the 27-member bloc fails to approve last year's trade framework by July 4.
The announcement on Thursday appeared to be a deadline extension after the president said last Friday that EU autos would face a higher 25 per cent tariff starting this week. Trump made the updated announcement after what he described as a "great call" with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Still, the US president was displeased that the European Parliament had yet to finalize the trade arrangement reached last year, which was further complicated in February by the US Supreme Court ruling that Trump lacked the legal authority to declare an economic emergency to impose the initial tariffs used to pressure the EU into talks.
"A promise was made that the EU would deliver their side of the Deal and, as per Agreement, cut their Tariffs to ZERO!" Trump posted. "I agreed to give her until our Country's 250th Birthday or, unfortunately, their Tariffs would immediately jump to much higher levels."
It was unclear from the post whether Trump was implying that the tariff rates would jump on all EU goods or the increase would only apply to autos.
His latest statement indicates he might be backing away from his earlier threat on EU autos by giving the European Parliament several more weeks to approve the agreement.
Under the original terms of the framework, the US would charge a 15 per cent tax on most goods imported from the EU.
But since the Supreme Court ruling, the administration has levied a 10 per cent tariff while investigating trade imbalances and national security issues, aiming to put in new tariffs to make up for lost revenues.
