By Arun Pratap Singh
Dehradun, 12 Apr: In view of senior Congress leader Priyanka Vadra’s scheduled visit to Uttarakhand tomorrow, BJP has posed some questions for her.
BJP Spokesperson Honey Pathak today challenged Priyanka Vadra to speak, before coming to Uttarakhand, on the insults directed at women by Congress leaders. Honey Pathak was interacting with media persons at the BJP’s Election Media Centre here today.
Reminding that Priyanka Vadra had famously stated ‘Ladki Hoon Lad Sakti Hoon’, Honey Pathak sought to know from her why, despite being a girl, she can’t fight against the constant insulting of women by her party leaders?
“Why can’t Priyanka Vadra open her mouth on this injustice and why, despite her mother having been her party’s national party for so long and having been a de facto PM, the Congress party could not come up with a bill regarding reservations for women in legislatures?”, questioned Pathak. Claiming that Priyanka Vadra makes appearances in Uttarakhand only at the time of elections, she added that it would be a major achievement for the Congress leaders of Uttarakhand if they manage to merely have her darshan at the time of elections.
Honey Pathak added that Priyanka Gandhi is a senior leader of a national political party and no one including from the BJP has any objection to her coming here. But the women of Uttarakhand, who play such a contributory role in the state’s development, would definitely like to know the answers to some important questions from her. Why does Priyanka Vadra choose to remain silent when women leaders of other parties like BJP are insulted by the Congress leaders. Why can’t she fight against this injustice despite being a girl, Pathak wanted to know. The BJP spokesperson recalled some recent incidents when the women leaders of BJP were referred to in grossly indecent was. Recently, very senior Congress leader Randeep Surjewala had made “obscene” remarks about the BJP candidate from Mathura and actor Hema Malini. Similarly, the Congress party’s very senior spokesperson Supriya Shrinate had posted a highly derogatory tweet about BJP’s candidate from Mandi and Bollywood Actor Kangana Ranaut. However, instead of taking any action against Shrinate, the Congress party sent her to Dehradun to present the Congress manifesto before the media here.
Expressing anguish in this regard, Pathak claimed that, while Congress and its top leaders, despite being women, can forget the insult to the women caused by the party leaders, the people of Devbhoomi dominated by women will never forget this insult.
Pathak also sought a clarification from Priyanka Vadra why the Congress which has had a woman Prime Minister thrice and her mother Sonia Gandhi as National President for over 23 years, could not come up with a bill providing reservation to women in the legislatures. She also sought to know why Congress remains silent over injustice to women from a particular community in the name of Triple Talaq and why did it oppose the BJP Government’s move to ban the practice. She also reminded that, even when the Supreme Court had settled a case of maintenance allowance in favour of an aged and oppressed Muslim woman, Shah Bano, the then Congress Government had overturned the judgement through a bill presented in the Lok Sabha. Honey Pathak also claimed that, while Priyanka Gandhi Vadra speaks about women in the states ruled by BJP or other parties, it never took action against atrocities committed against women in the states ruled by Congress or its allies like Jharkhand, West Bengal or in the states which were then ruled by Congress like Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. The BJP spokesperson claimed that unless Priyanka Vadra answers these questions, no one in Uttarakhand will believe her claims and promises when she comes here tomorrow.
She demanded an apology from the Congress leaders for insulting women from time to time.
