AAP leader apologises for remarks against Kerala nurses

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Executive Member Kumar Vishwas, whose alleged derogatory remarks against Kerala nurses sparked a controversy, today tendered an apology, saying it was never his intention to hurt the feelings of any one.

In a statement sent to the AAP’s Kerala unit, he said he had never tried to ‘intentionally hurt the sentiments of anyone’.

“It has come to my knowledge that an old video-clip of one of my

kavi-sammelans has hurt the feelings of many of my friends residing in Kerala. I must say that I don’t appreciate any discrimination based on religion, region, gender, caste or creed. I never tried to intentionally hurt the sentiments of anyone,” he said.

Vishwas said jokes delivered in a

kavi-sammelan are scripted and presented in a jocular and light-hearted manner without an intention to harm anybody’s feelings. “But if some words of mine have hurt the sentiments of my friends, I apologise to them from depth of my heart,” he said.

Yesterday, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy had demanded an apology from the APP leader for his remarks.

In a letter to AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Chandy had wanted him to prevail upon Vishwas to withdraw the remarks and tender an apology.

“It is most unfortunate that the Aam Aadmi Party is tightlipped regarding the derogatory remarks on Malayalee nurses,” he had said.

The comments of Vishwas against Malayalee nurses made in a speech at Ranchi in 2008 and uploaded in a social networking site recently, had sparked strong protests across the State, with Youth Congress workers ransacking AAP’s office here on January 20.

AAP Kerala unit spokesperson K. P. Rateesh also apologised to the people of the State for the remarks. ‘AAP has the highest respect for Malayalee nurses’, he said.