Pronunciation error

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Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien — more famous as a quizmaster than a politician — is one of the few from the Anglo-Indian community in Parliament. When he made his maiden speech in Parliament regarding the Railway Budget, many MPs, including the chair, were mispronouncing his name. However, when S S Ahluwalia from the Bharatiya Janata Party addressed him as “Derek O’Brain”, it was a little too much for former Sports Minister M S Gill. Gill sprung up and in chaste Punjabi told Ahluwalia that it was not O’Brain, but O’Brien, and Derek should be addressed properly. After all, the Anglo- Indians have done much for the country, he added. Gill has studied from a convent school where he was taught by Anglo-Indian teachers. The chair’s pleas to Gill to sit down went unheeded.
First Published: Apr 01 2012 | 12:26 AM IST