Karnataka Food Minister U T Khader has landed in a controversy after he said yesterday at a function attended by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan that those opposing his visit were not even fit to be compared with the CM's chappals and those violating the Constitution should be hit with footwear.
The speech did not go down well with the local public and the remark invited widespread criticism and Khader was forced to do a damage control exercise.
He said today that he had not made the remark to insult or deride anyone and spoke at the heat of the moment thinking that the Dakshina Kannada district would get insulted when they were opposing the visit of a democratically elected Chief Minister who was 70 years old.
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The chief minister of the neighbouring state had come here as our guest.
"I was deeply pained that the cultural heritage of our district would be damaged by the acts of the protesters, he said, adding that he expressed his feelings out of agony.
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