Facing flak over his "ripped jeans" comment, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat on Friday said he apologises for the remark if it has hurt anybody. But at the same time, he repeated his objection to ripped jeans, saying he has no problem with jeans with but wearing "torn" ones is "not right". Referring to his remark made earlier this week, Rawat told the media that he had commented that nowadays children bring a costly jean home and then cut it with a pair of scissors.

He had only talked about the environment at home and this applies to him as well, Rawat said. If we inculcate good values and discipline in children, they will never fail in the future, the CM added, stressing that he had made the comment at a programme held to keep the children away from intoxicants and other evils. Describing himself as a man from a rural background, Rawat on Friday said whenever his pant was torn in schooldays, he feared that his teacher would scold him. Due to discipline and values, we used to cover it with a patch, he said.