After being widely criticised, Madhya Pradesh Cooperatives Minister Gauri Shankar Bisen on Sunday apologised for getting his shoelaces tied by a tribal student, adding that he had bought six pairs of shoes without laces to avoid such incidents.
Bisen got his shoelaces tied by the child twice on Friday during a function in Chhindwada district which was also attended by union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath.
"I did a blunder by getting my shoelaces tied by a child," Bisen told reporters in Chhindwada, some 270 km from here.
"I have been advised by doctors not to bend, so the child was helping me, he is like a family member," he added.
Kamal Nath had described the act as "sha meful".
"I felt very bad about Kamal Nath and other Congress leader's reactions on the incident.
"I have bought six pairs of shoes without laces to avoid such incidents," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) minister said.