Dec 03 2014 : The Times of India (Ahmedabad)
Item girls prostitutes: Hindu outfit member
Jind: TNN & AGENCIES |
Says Will Move SC; Jeans Must Be Banned For Girls
A day after Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha demanded that girls be restricted from wearing jeans, the general secretary of its UP unit Naveen Tyagi told Times Now the outfit was going to move the Supreme Court to declare "item girls" as prostitutes."We're holding talks with our functionaries. Once the Supreme Court declares them prostitutes, they (item girls) will obviously be boycotted by society," Tyagi told a Times Now correspondent.
Claiming to be working for the safety of women, Tyagi said all item girls and heroines who wear skimpy clothes are prostitutes. This matter, he said, is with their "capable" lawyers — the reason he wasn't willing to speak about it in public— but added that the Mahasabha's Meerut unit is helping in compiling video clips of item girls for the Supreme Court.
He went on to say that airing of women in such clothes leads to heinous crimes.
"The girls who perform item numbers in films and remove clothes should be de clared prostitutes. We feel the women who earn money by indulging in obscenity are prostitutes. They are spreading filth in society ," Tyagi said. National secretary of the outfit, Swami Chakrapani, however, distanced himself from the controversial remarks.
Meanwhile, another functionary contested Monday's reports that had said the Mahasabha was against girls wearing jeans. The outfit's Haryana spokesman Lalit Bhardwaj clarified, "We're not against girls wearing jeans, but against girls wearing skimpy clothes." The outfit had demanded a dress code for girls in schools and colleges and a ban on mobile phones on their premises "to check increasing obscenity".
Asked about the Mahasabha's stand, BJP spokesman Sambit Mahapatra told Times Now, "BJP can't speak on their behalf. BJP is for the freedom of society. Let the women of the country decide what they study, what they wear, and how they choose to live their lives. India is proud to have women who've led from the front and made the country proud. Any organization that speaks in a demeaning way of women will have to face fire."
Times View
The Hindu Mahasabha leader's comments on what kind of clothes women should wear and why item girls should be treated as prostitutes smack of the medieval mindset that is exhibited by outfits like the Taliban or ISIS. What is alarming is that such statements are becoming increasingly frequent in India from right wing groups of all hues, some citing religion and others caste traditions as their justification for moral policing. The prime minister should be aware that at least some of these groups feel emboldened by the perception that there is now a government that is sympathetic to their viewpoint. Mr Modi has repeatedly emphasized that he wants to build a modern India that can hold its head high in the global community. Unless such groups are reined in, India's image can only take a beating, at home and abroad.
Claiming to be working for the safety of women, Tyagi said all item girls and heroines who wear skimpy clothes are prostitutes. This matter, he said, is with their "capable" lawyers — the reason he wasn't willing to speak about it in public— but added that the Mahasabha's Meerut unit is helping in compiling video clips of item girls for the Supreme Court.
He went on to say that airing of women in such clothes leads to heinous crimes.
"The girls who perform item numbers in films and remove clothes should be de clared prostitutes. We feel the women who earn money by indulging in obscenity are prostitutes. They are spreading filth in society ," Tyagi said. National secretary of the outfit, Swami Chakrapani, however, distanced himself from the controversial remarks.
Meanwhile, another functionary contested Monday's reports that had said the Mahasabha was against girls wearing jeans. The outfit's Haryana spokesman Lalit Bhardwaj clarified, "We're not against girls wearing jeans, but against girls wearing skimpy clothes." The outfit had demanded a dress code for girls in schools and colleges and a ban on mobile phones on their premises "to check increasing obscenity".
Asked about the Mahasabha's stand, BJP spokesman Sambit Mahapatra told Times Now, "BJP can't speak on their behalf. BJP is for the freedom of society. Let the women of the country decide what they study, what they wear, and how they choose to live their lives. India is proud to have women who've led from the front and made the country proud. Any organization that speaks in a demeaning way of women will have to face fire."
Times View
The Hindu Mahasabha leader's comments on what kind of clothes women should wear and why item girls should be treated as prostitutes smack of the medieval mindset that is exhibited by outfits like the Taliban or ISIS. What is alarming is that such statements are becoming increasingly frequent in India from right wing groups of all hues, some citing religion and others caste traditions as their justification for moral policing. The prime minister should be aware that at least some of these groups feel emboldened by the perception that there is now a government that is sympathetic to their viewpoint. Mr Modi has repeatedly emphasized that he wants to build a modern India that can hold its head high in the global community. Unless such groups are reined in, India's image can only take a beating, at home and abroad.