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Punjab Congress files complaint with NCW against CM Bhagwant Mann for ‘sexist remarks’ on women
The Congress said that video recordings and screenshots of the speech have been widely circulated on television, social media and print media, sparking outrage.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann speaks during the Punjab Legislative Assembly's budget session, in Chandigarh on Monday. (@BhagwantMann X/ANI Photo)
The Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) Wednesday submitted a formal complaint to the National Commission for Women (NCW) accusing Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of making derogatory, objectifying and misogynistic remarks against women during an official government function held on International Women’s Day in Sunam, Sangrur district.
This is the second complaint by the Congress on the issue. On Tuesday, the party had approached the Punjab State Women Commission seeking similar action. SAD MLA Ganieve Kaur Majithia has said that she would approach the NCW if the CM did not apologise.
In the complaint, addressed to NCW Chairperson Vijaya Kishore Rahatkar and signed by Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa along with several Congress MLAs, the Congress has demanded suo motu cognisance, summoning of the CM, registration of an FIR, a public apology and constitutional action against him.
According to the complaint, while addressing the gathering that included a large number of women, the CM narrated an anecdote from his college days about a female student and allegedly used objectifying and demeaning expressions in Punjabi.
The Congress said that video recordings and screenshots of the speech have been widely circulated on television, social media and print media, sparking outrage.
The PPCC argued that the remarks amount to objectification and commodification of women, violate constitutional guarantees of equality and dignity under Articles 14, 15 and 21, and are particularly grave as they were made on International Women’s Day from the official dais by the head of the state government.
The complaint states that the statements prima facie attract provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 Section 79 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), Section 75 (sexual harassment, including sexually coloured remarks) and Section 356 (defamation).
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The complaint was also accompanied by a video recording/screenshots of the speech as evidence. No statement has been issued so far by the CM or the AAP government on the allegations.
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