He was responding to reporters' questions about programmes to promote the Tamil language.
Asked about Tamil lyricist Vairamuthu, who is caught in a controversy over his alleged remarks on Hindu Goddess Andal, Radhakrishnan said he should seek an apology from Goddess Andal if he felt that it was through her he learnt Tamil.
"There is nothing wrong in seeking an apology from the mother," he added.
Vairamuthu's alleged remarks led to outrage among devotees, who charged that the lyricist had offended them and Andal by making "inappropriate and objectionable" references to her.
"Andal is also my mother. She is a Tamilian," he had said in a nearly ten minute video released in social media.
It was through her that he learnt Tamil, Vairamuthu said, adding, he held both his "own mother and mother Andal" on the same high-footing.
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