New Delhi/Patna: Two senior politicians — BJP MP Vinay Katiyar and former JD(U) president and Rajya Sabha member Sharad Yadav — on Wednesday stoked controversy by making sexist remarks against women. The National Commission for Women issued a notice to Mr Yadav for his remarks and sought an explanation within 24 hours, failing which he will have to appear before the panel. Mr Katiyar stoked a controversy, saying there were “more beautiful women star campaigners than Priyanka Gandhi” in his party, provoking a sharp response from Ms Gandhi, who said his “sexist” remarks exposed the saffron party’s mindset towards women.
Interestingly, Mr Katiyar’s name doesn’t figure in the list of the BJP’s star campaigners. The BJP later tried to distance itself from Mr Katiyar’s comments, with senior Union minister M. Venkaiah Naidu saying such utterances were not acceptable to his party and that the government also does not support them. He expressed the hope that both Mr Katiyar and JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav withdraw their statements.
Senior JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav on Tuesday landed himself in a controversy after saying a “vote’s prestige is bigger than that of a daughter”. The former JD(U) chief made these remarks at a function in Patna to emphasise the importance of votes.
