Misogyny of Akhil Giri is just not totally different from that of Mamata’s remarks on rape ases

Trinamool Congress Minister Akhil Giri is underneath the highlight for his misogynist remarks towards President Droupadi Murmu, who’s the primary member of the tribal neighborhood to carry the submit of the Indian President.

Giri, who serves because the Minister for Correctional Administration, was lately heard as saying, “He (Suvendu Adhikari) claimed that I don’t look good. How beautiful is Suvendu? We don’t judge people by their appearance. We respect the office of the President (Draupadi Murmu). But have you looked at her face?”

#WATCH | “We don’t judge anyone by their appearance, we respect the office of the President (of India). But how does our President look?,” says West Bengal Minister and TMC chief Akhil Giri in Nandigram (11.11.2022) pic.twitter.com/UcGKbGqc7p

— ANI (@ANI) November 12, 2022

His derogatory remarks have drawn the ire of social media customers and politicians alike, who at the moment are questioning the celebration for harbouring such a Minister.

Trinamool Congress has a historical past of misogynist behaviour, though a few of the celebration leaders are recognized to mouth platitudes about ladies’s empowerment. A giant a part of the issue is the TMC supremo herself, who has a historical past of sufferer blaming and has been accused of trivialising heinous crimes akin to rape.

In April this yr, TMC supremo Banerjee downplayed the brutal rape and homicide of a 14-year-old lady in Nadia’s Hanskhali village. She claimed that ‘everyone was aware of the girl’s love affair, so one was left to surprise right here whether or not it was an precise rape or being pregnant that went unsuitable’.

Shocking assertion by Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, who trivialises the brutal rape and homicide of a 14 yr outdated lady in Nadia’s Hanskhali. She questions the sufferer and asks if it was a love affair or a case of unplanned being pregnant gone awry!

Because the accused is TMC chief’s son. pic.twitter.com/ZaMFL73T03

— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) April 11, 2022

“As a layman, I am saying where would someone get the evidence of whether the girl was actually raped or pregnant. Or was there any other reason, like someone beat her up or she died of some illness?” Banerjee remarked.

“There was a love affair for sure, her family knew about it, and their neighbours also knew about it. Now if a girl and a boy love each other, I cannot punish them”, she forged aspersions on the case.

The West Bengal Chief Minister blatantly tried to trivialise statutory rape, solely as a result of the prime accused within the case was the son of Trinamool Congress (TMC) Gajna Gram Panchayat member Samar Gowla.

The Infamous Park Street Case

From time to time, Mamata Banerjee had tried to insinuate that rape circumstances in West Bengal have been motivated by political vendetta. She has usually accused victims of mendacity and staging a ‘rape’ to defame her authorities.

The most evident instance of such problematic behaviour has been her remarks within the aftermath of the 2012 Park Street rape case. An Anglo-Indian girl, by the identify Suzette Jordan, was raped in a shifting automobile by 5 males on February 6, 2012, when she was returning residence from Park Street in Kolkata.

Soon after the information surfaced, TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee absolved the accused of all prices. She had dubbed the incident as ‘shajano ghotona‘ (concocted incident) that was allegedly ‘designed to malign the government.’

Three years later in 2015, a Kolkata Court upheld the rape prices within the Park Street case and discovered accused Nasir Khan, Ruman Khan and Sumit Bajaj responsible.

When Mamata Banerjee blamed malls and multiplexes for rise in rape circumstances

After one other rape case in Burdwan’s Katwa in the identical yr, Mamata Banerjee once more dismissed the rape allegations, even earlier than the investigation was concluded.

“A political party is doing all this, shouting rape. They are playing this drama. Harmader diye natok shajachhe jatey Banglar nam kharap hochhe (They are staging an act to give a bad name to West Bengal)”, she was heard as saying.

In 2013, throughout a debate within the West Bengal legislative meeting concerning the rising circumstances of rapes within the State, the CM insinuated that it was as a consequence of a rise within the inhabitants of the State. She had additionally blamed modernisation, a rise in buying malls and multiplexes for rising rape circumstances.

Akhil Giri will get away with mere lip service

When Mamata Banerjee herself has made disparaging feedback about rape victims, it, subsequently, comes as no shock why Akhil Giri was in a position to get away after mocking the bodily look of President Droupadi Murmu.

TMC dismissed its duty by placing out a tweet of ‘condemnation’ and never taking any concrete motion towards its motormouth chief. And this bolstered the politician to make use of his apology to additional rationalise his statements.

I respect President. I discussed the submit&made a comparability to reply to Suvendu Adhikari,I didn’t take any identify. He had mentioned Akhil Giri appears to be like dangerous in his look. I’m a min,took oath to workplace. If one thing is claimed towards me, it’s an insult to Constitution: WB Min Akhil Giri pic.twitter.com/9w1oY2BuZA

— ANI (@ANI) November 12, 2022

“I respect President. I mentioned the post & made a comparison to respond to Suvendu Adhikari, I didn’t take any name. He had said Akhil Giri looks bad in his appearance. I’m a Minister, took oath to office. If something is said against me, it’s an insult to Constitution. I said ‘President’, I didn’t take anyone’s name,” he had justified.

For all those that are outraged by the remarks of Akhil Giri, there may be little hope of grievance redressal throughout the Mamata Banerjee-led-Trinamool Congress for the reason that tradition just about stems from the highest.