Agartala, Sep 4 (IANS) A bizarre debate over the right term to address the governor's wife in Tripura has been resolved with the state government being advised by the Raj Bhavan to refer to her as the "first lady" and not as "lady governor".

The controversy arose after Shyamacharan Tripura, a tribal legislator, took offence when Tripura Governor Dinesh Nandan Sahaya's wife was referred to as the "lady governor" at a police function. The legislator shot off a formal letter to Tripura police chief G.M. Srivastava and the governor expressing his dissatisfaction over the matter -- and the debate ceased to die down.

"Lady governor is not a correct nomenclature or form of address though in all states of the country it has come to pass in usage and common parlance both in official and non-official levels," the governor said in a letter to Shyamacharan Tripura.

"Whenever the need be on formal or official occasions, I address my spouse as the first lady of Tripura, which is a correct and appropriate nomenclature for the spouse of the governor."