Nothing wrong in Sadhana Singh's remarks against Mayawati: BJP MLA
Ballia (UP), Jan 21 : BJP MLA Surendra Singh Monday came out in support of his party colleague Sadhana Singh, who raised a political storm by calling BSP chief Mayawati "worse than a transgender", saying there was nothing wrong in her remarks.
"There is nothing wrong in what Sadhana Singh said...any person who has zero self-respect is called a transgender," the MLA from Bariya constituency said while talking to reporters here.
"The manner in which Mayawati has joined hands with the Samajwadi Party after the state guest house case of 1995 goes on to prove that she has no self-respect," he added.
On police complaint against Sadhana Singh, he said, "How will the case be filed...we will protest against it."
Sadhana Singh, a legislator from Uttar Pradesh's Mughalsarai, had at a rally Saturday called the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief a "blot on womankind" and "worse than a transgender", following which the BJP MLA issued an apology, clarifying that she did not mean to hurt anyone.
The BJP lawmaker made the controversial remarks while referring to the infamous incident when Mayawati was assaulted by Samajwadi Party workers in a Lucknow guest house in 1995.
"Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati sold her dignity for power and joined hands with those who disrespected her... She is a blot on womankind. Cannot say if she can be counted among men or women, she is worse than a transgender person," she had said.
Condemning her remarks, Union minister and Republican Party of India president Ramdas Athawale said such personal comments should not be made.
BSP leader S C Misra tweeted, "BJP leaders have lost their mental balance after the BSP-SP tie-up" which, he said, threatened to rock the ruling party's boat.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and the Congress had also denounced Sadhana Singh for using objectionable remarks against Mayawati.
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Women BJP MLAs protest against opposition in UP assembly premises
Lucknow (PTI): Women BJP MLAs held a protest in the Vidhan Bhawan complex before the one-day special session of Uttar Pradesh assembly, slamming the opposition for defeating the passage of a bill, which would have led to implementation of the Women's Reservation Law, in the Lok Sabha.
This followed another demonstration by Samajwadi Party MLAs, who alleged that the BJP was misleading public in the name of women's reservation.
The women BJP legislators assembled in front of Chaudhary Charan Singh's statue in the assembly premises, holding banners inscribed with the slogan "Insult to Matrushakti (women's power), India will not tolerate it". The protesting members entered the main hall of Vidhan Bhawan carrying the banners.
Participating in the protest, the state Minister for Women Welfare and Child Development, Baby Rani Maurya, told reporters that all opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, had opposed the women's reservation, a stance for which they would have to pay a heavy political price.
"On this issue, all of us women stand united. We will ensure that we secure our reservation," she said.
BJP MLA Ketki Singh remarked that their protest represents the collective outrage of millions of women across the state.
Singh asserted that the opposition has betrayed women by creating hurdles in the path of women's reservation. The current demonstration is merely the beginning, and very soon, women from every street, intersection and household will join the protest movement, she said.
Minister Vijaylakshmi Gautam said, "We strongly condemn the despicable act committed by the Samajwadi Party and the Congress in an attempt to hold back 'half the population' (women). Their action was directed against the very bill that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had introduced to empower and strengthen Nari Shakti (women's power), and which he strived to pass expeditiously."
Uttar Pradesh assembly is holding a one-day special session on Thursday. During the session, the government is set to move a censure motion against the opposition parties over their failure to pass the Constitution Amendment Bill, which would have led to implementation of the Women's Reservation Act, in the Lok Sabha.
