At the Leadership Summit of the Hindustan Times, Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had to summon all his wits to save his back. The moment he took to the dais, there was a ‘carpet bombing’ of questions. Especially pointed was the question why every single of his statements generates a controversy. But Parrikar tackled the googly with a straight bat: he said his mother tongue is Konkani, which is not as colourful as Punjabi, leaving little scope for colourful speeches. This is why, he said, whenever he wants to say something, people, especially scribes, fail to understand him and gives his statements a different meaning.