Gujarat: Priyanka Gandhi backs Geniben Thakor, calls BJP remarks "shameful and insulting"

New Delhi [India], May 2 : Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday criticised the Gujarat BJP President over his alleged remarks against senior Congress leader and MP Geniben Thakor, calling the comments "utterly shameful and insulting."

In a post on X, Priyanka Gandhi said the remark was unacceptable and accused the BJP of disrespecting women both inside and outside Parliament.

"The unseemly remark by the Gujarat BJP President against Congress senior leader and MP Geniben Thakor ji is utterly shameful and insulting," she said.

She further alleged that the BJP government and its leaders often make derogatory remarks against women while claiming to support women's empowerment.

"On one hand, the BJP government humiliates women by making baseless accusations against them even in Parliament; on the other hand, their leaders demean women with indecent comments. The BJP always provides protection to such people," she said.

Priyanka Gandhi also termed this as reflective of what she described as the BJP's "anti-women political homage to women".

She expressed support for Geniben Thakor, saying she stood with her and praised her courage.

"I know of your struggles and stand with you. We are all proud of your courage," she said.

Earlier on Saturday, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP, accusing the party of harbouring a "distorted mindset" following allegedly indecent remarks made by the BJP's Gujarat President against Congress MP Geniben Thakor.

Gandhi, in a post on X, claimed the incident has effectively unmasked the ruling party's celebrated "Nari Vandana" (reverence for women) slogan, exposing what he described as an "anti-woman ideology."

Gandhi questioned the sincerity of the BJP's outreach to women, suggesting that their respect is conditional and vanishes the moment a woman challenges their authority.

"The mask of 'Nari Vandana' has come off," Gandhi stated. "This is not just shamefulit's the true face of BJP's Manuvadi, anti-woman ideology. Women who challenge power are intolerable to them."

The statement concluded with a stern warning of electoral and social repercussions. Gandhi asserted that the insult to Geniben Thakora prominent leader in Gujarat who famously won her seat against the BJP tidewould not be forgotten by the electorate.

"The anti-woman BJP should remember thiswomen of Gujarat, along with women across all of Hindustan, will deliver a fitting slap in response to every insult," he warned.

The controversy comes at a time of heightened political friction between the two parties in Gujarat. Geniben Thakor has emerged as a significant figure for the Congress in the state, and the party is now positioning the alleged remarks as a broader attack on the dignity of "Hindustan's women," signalling that this issue will be central to their upcoming political campaigns.

The Bhartiya Janata Party State President Jagdish Vishwakarma, while addressing party workers at the Vijay Vishwas Sammelan held at Chadotar in Palanpur, made a controversial remark against Geniben Thakor.

He said, "The sisters of Banas will never forget the insult you have inflicted on 70 crore women of the country under the Nari Vandana Act. In the coming days, our mothers and sisters will give a befitting reply to it and snatch your seats from your stronghold and the pallu of your saree."

This comes after the failure of the 131st Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha on April 17, 2026. The government introduced this bill to fast-track the 2023 reservation, aiming to implement the 33% quota by the 2029 General Elections without waiting for a fresh Census.

Because it was a Constitutional Amendment, it required a two-thirds majority (approx. 352 votes). However, in favour, the bill got 298 ayes and 230 nos. The government fell 54 votes short, and the bill was defeated.

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