The National Commission for Women (NCW,) today, issued a notice to Rahul Gandhi, the Congress party chief, for his offensive remarks against Nirmala Sitharaman, the Defence Minister of India.
Rekha Sharma, the Chairperson of the NCW, said, “He should explain his statement and should have apologised… Nirmala Sitharaman is the defence minister of India… we did not expect such statements by the president of a party which gave India its first and only female PM. What did Gandhi mean when he said ‘be a man’?”
The notice issued by the NCW reads, “The National Commission for Women has taken suo motu cognisance of the media report which appeared in various print and electronic media dated 9th January,2019. Wherein it is reported that you have allegedly made remarks insulting against a woman minister.”
Rahul Gandhi, while addressing a rally in Rajasthan, said, “The watchman (PM Modi) with a 56-inch chest ran away and told a woman, Sitharaman ji, defend me. I won’t be able to defend myself, defend me. For two and a half hours, the woman could not defend him. I had asked a straight question – answer yes or no – but she couldn’t answer.” Taking a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr. Gandhi said, “Be a man.”
The NCW asked Rahul Gandhi to give satisfactory justification for his offensive and misogynistic remarks against Nirmala Sitharaman.
