Bengaluru, May 27 (IANS) Karnataka Minister for RDPR, IT and BT Priyank Kharge said on Tuesday that no matter how many times apologies are tendered by the BJP leaders, their mindset towards women will not change as they believe in Manusmriti.

The state minister was responding to the BJP MLC N. Ravikumar for his remarks calling Kalaburagi Deputy Commissioner Fouzia Taranum a ‘Pakistani’.

“Ravikumar has a Manusmriti mindset. The BJP’s agenda is to prevent women from coming to the forefront. All of them have been trained by the RSS, which promotes the idea that the Constitution should be rejected in favour of the Manusmriti. Is there any scope for the development of women in the Manusmriti? In Madhya Pradesh, Minister Vijay Shah made derogatory comments, calling Colonel Sofiya Qureshi a sister of terrorists. No action was taken against him either,” said Priyank Kharge.

The minister pointed out that Deputy Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Jagdish Devda, insulted Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and the soldiers, yet no action was taken against him.

“The same mindset is seen in Karnataka, where Ravikumar and RSS leaders believe that women should not be part of the mainstream and should remain confined to the kitchen,” Kharge alleged.

He further slammed Ravikumar, saying that Fouzia Taranum is an officer of the Indian Administrative Service, which is called IAS, not PAS (Pakistani Administrative Service).

Kharge pointed out that Deputy Commissioner Fouzia Taranum was recently honoured by the President of India as one of the best-performing officers.

“A woman from a minority community, the minister said, coming from a poor background, has become a Deputy Commissioner and is rendering commendable service to the people. The BJP cannot tolerate this. Whether it’s Sofiya Qureshi, Fouzia Taranum, or Savitribai Phule, Manuvadis have always resisted the progress of women. Even if apologies are made, their mentality will remain the same,” Kharge said.

The remarks of Ravikumar have triggered a controversy in Karnataka and caused embarrassment to the BJP.

The IAS Officers’ Association strongly condemned the incident, while Ravikumar has also expressed regret over his remarks.

Meanwhile, BJP State President B.Y. Vijayendra said that the Congress-led government is targeting Opposition parties and leaders, trying to intimidate them by filing police cases.

“We staged a protest in Kalaburagi against Minister for RDPR, IT, and BT Priyank Kharge. We raised our voice against the collapse of the system in Kalaburagi district and highlighted how the police department is acting like a puppet in the hands of politicians,” he said.

According to the FIR, Ravikumar allegedly questioned whether Deputy Commissioner Fouzia Taranum belongs to India or Pakistan. He is also accused of stating that, being a Muslim, she is incapable of showing loyalty and trust in the Indian Constitution due to her religion.

“MLC N. Ravikumar made certain remarks and later apologised for them. But the Congress leaders got the police complaint against him from a third party, and an FIR was registered. In Mangaluru, an FIR was filed against BJP MLA Y. Bharath Shetty, and earlier, another BJP MLA from the region, Harish Poonja, also faced a similar case. They obtained a stay from the court,” Vijayendra stated.

He alleged that they similarly suspended 18 BJP MLAs.

“This is a clear attempt to target the Opposition, and such tactics are undemocratic,” he said.

–IANS

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