He accused BJP leaders of promoting anti-women politics after controversial remarks targeting Geniben Thakor
New Delhi
The Congress leader criticised the ruling party after Gujarat BJP president Jagdish Vishwakarma allegedly made indecent comments during a public meeting in Palanpur.
Gandhi said the remarks exposed the reality behind the BJP’s repeated claims of respecting women through its ‘Nari Vandana’ campaign. In a post on X, he accused the BJP of carrying a “Manuvadi” and anti-woman mindset that cannot tolerate women questioning authority.
He also reminded Prime Minister Narendra Modi about his earlier statement that women never forget insults against them. The controversy began after Vishwakarma told party workers that women in Gujarat would politically defeat Geniben Thakor and take away seats from her stronghold.
Congress leaders strongly objected to the remarks and claimed they insulted not only Thakor but women across the country. The political row comes soon after the Lok Sabha failed to pass the 131st Constitutional Amendment Bill on women’s reservation.
The proposed law aimed to speed up implementation of the 33 percent reservation for women before the 2029 general elections. However, the bill failed after the government could not secure the required two-thirds majority in Parliament.
Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had opposed the bill, calling it politically motivated and unfair to southern states. They argued the proposal linked women’s reservation with a future delimitation process that could change parliamentary representation between states.
The government received 298 votes in favour and 230 against, falling fifty-four votes short of approval. With the bill defeated, implementation of reserved seats for women is expected to face further delays. Congress leaders said the latest controversy involving Geniben Thakor would remain a major campaign issue in Gujarat and other states ahead of future elections during upcoming political rallies and public meetings nationwide
