Shehzad Poonawala seeks Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's response on Rajasthan CM Gehlot's rape law remarks
Aug 07, 2022
New Delhi [India] August 7 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala on Sunday lashed out at Ashok Gehlot-led government in Rajasthan and demanded Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's response on Gehlot's rape law remarks.
Poonawalla said that Ashok Gehlot was blaming the rape laws, which were made stringent after the Nirbhaya episode which took place under the UPA watch, instead of blaming the rapists.
He slammed the mindset of the Congress party and said it is suffering from "blame game" mentality.
Shehzad Poonawala said, "In the past, Gehlot said that most of the rape cases filed by SC women are fake and even blamed rapes on rising unemployment and price rise. He also reminded about the statements of Shantilal Dhariwal, Minister in the Gehlot government, who said that Rajasthan was a 'Mardon Ka Pradesh' while justifying why Rajasthan had become number one in rapes and women atrocities. He linked this to the rise in rapes in Rajasthan."
Poonawalla wondered if the Congress party was batting for weaker rape laws. He slammed Priyanka Vadra for remaining silent on this statement and questioned her on her continuous silence over a series of sexist and anti-women remarks made by Congress leaders.
Attacking her for her politics on women's atrocities, he said that the slogan 'Ladki Hoon lad Sakte Hoon' had become 'Ladki hoon bach sakti hoon' in Rajasthan.
Poonawalla further added that in Rajasthan, the law and order situation has gone out of control, be it rapes or riots. He accused Congress of extending a hand of patronage to rioters and to rapists by recounting how the Karauli riots main accused was still not caught.
He said, "Over 2,000 rape cases of young girls take place in Rajasthan every year." He also asked whether the congress party would next provide facilities and employment opportunities to rapists.
Earlier on Friday, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said that after the law to hang the rape accused came into force, the incidents of murder after rape have increased across the country.
He further said that "after the Nirbhaya case, the demand to hang the accused gained momentum and after that, the law came into force. Since then, there has been an increase in the cases of murder of women after rape."
"Due to the law on the hanging of culprits after the Nirbhaya case, the incidents of murder after rape have increased. This is a dangerous trend being seen in the country," said Rajasthan CM.
Gehlot claimed that the trend of murder after rape has reached an alarming level across the country.
"The rapist feels that the victim will become a witness against the accused. In such a situation, the accused finds it right to kill the victim. The reports that are coming from all over the country show a very dangerous trend. The situation in the country is not good," he added.