Accusing the Congress of "humiliating" President Droupadi Murmu, the BJP today demanded an apology from Sonia Gandhi after its party leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury called Ms Murmu a "Rashtrapatni".

Here's your 10-point guide to this great story:

1.      Ms Irani launched a scathing attack on Sonia Gandhi and demanded an apology from her. "Sonia Gandhi allowed the humiliation of a woman in the highest constitutional office of the country," he said. An angry Ms Irani also called Ms Gandhi "anti-Adivasi, anti-Dalit and anti-women".

2.      Another protest led by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who recently recovered from Covid, saw her state with fellow MPs holding placards on the Parliament floor protesting the comments. In the lower house, Ms. Sitharaman called it "deliberate sexual abuse" and demanded that the Congress president apologize on behalf of the party.

3.      "I demand an apology from the president of the Congress party who is a woman herself who could speak to their leader like that. Sonia Gandhi should come before the nation and apologize for insulting the president," the finance minister said in the Lok Sabha. .

4.      Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was quick to explain this, saying it was a bit tongue in cheek and that the BJP had "made a mountain out of a molehill". He accused the BJP of diverting from important discussions on price hike, GST, Agnipath scheme, unemployment and other issues. Insisting there was no chance of an apology from the BJP, he said he would meet Ms Murmu personally and apologize to the President "a hundred times" if she said he was offended by her comments. He attributed his "persuasion" to the language barrier and claimed that he was a Bengali and did not know Hindi as it was not his mother tongue.

5.      "Whoever is the president of India, whether he is a Brahmin or an Adivasi, the president is the president for us. Our respect goes to that post. Yesterday, when we protested at Vijay Chowk, reporters asked us where we wanted to go. I told her I wanted to visit the president's house. I only said "Rashtrapatni" once... The reporter repeated mine and I said maybe I'm wrong and it's better if they don't air it. They (BJP) created a ruckus because of it. I was wrong only once and in one word,” Chowdhury said in a video statement posted on his Twitter account.

6.      In an interview with NDTV, Sonia Gandhi said that Mr Chowdhury had apologised. After the House adjourned, he crossed the floor of the House and told BJP MP Rama Devi, "Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has apologised. What is my fault?" Sources say Smriti Irani intervened and said, "Madam, can I help you? I have taken your name." To which Sonia Gandhi replied, "Don't tell me that."

7.      Mr. Chowdhury is the leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha and used the remark while speaking to the media during his party's protests on various issues.

8.      Ms Irani alleged that the Congress had "maliciously" targeted Ms Murmu as the BJP-led NDA named her as its presidential candidate, with its leader calling her a "puppet" and a "symbol of evil".

9.      "The Congressman knows that speaking to the President of India in this manner undermines not only his constitutional position but also the rich tribal heritage he represents," Smriti Irani said.

10.   The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 4 pm amid loud protests by the BJP