‘No govt order on changing term for widows’, Lodha after row

Despite Lodha’s claim, the letter from Chakankar does not mention “Ganga-Bhagirathi” but instead uses words like “Purnangi”, “Swayamsiddha” and “Sakshama”.

When asked who had suggested the word “Ganga-Bhagirathi”, Lodha did not reply.

Earlier in the day, Lodha found an unlikely ally in Chakankar who thanked him on social media for directing the administration to prepare a proposal in this regard. She, however, clarified that she had not suggested the word “Ganga-Bhagirathi” in her letter.

Objecting to the proposal, NCP MP Supriya Sule wrote to Lodha. “I came to know that you have written a letter to prepare a proposal to call widows as ‘Ganga-Bhagirathi’. This is very unfortunate and painful. Maharashtra has the legacy of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Maharashtra follows the progressive thoughts of Phule-Shahu-Ambedkar, Sane and Karve. At a time when many villages are making efforts to ensure widows gain their self-respect, this decision seem to have taken in a hurry,” she said.

Appealing to Lodha to not go ahead without taking organisations working in for widows into confidence, Sule asked him to take back the decision.

Atul Londhe, chief spokesperson of state Congress, told the media, “The manuwadi BJP government has once again insulted women with its rotten ideology that the universe of women should be limited to the kitchen and giving birth. The proposal to refer to widows as ‘Ganga-Bhagirathi’ has not been moved to honour women, but to humiliate them.”

Manisha Kayande of Shiv Sena (UBT) said that Lodha has been indulging in such acts for cheap publicity. “This is nothing but insulting women. The government should focus on working towards economic empowerment and social upliftment of widows and not on giving them news names.”

In his letter to the administration on Wednesday, Lodha had said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modiji declared the term ‘Divyang’ instead of disabled, which helped them get respect in society and society’s approach towards them has also changed. Similarly, the term widow should be changed to ‘Ganga-Bhagirathi’ and the department should prepare a proposal for the same.”

Lodha’s department was recently in a controversy after it formed a panel to track interfaith marriages in the state. The government had initially included intercaste marriages in the panel’s ambit, but it was later removed. The government had then claimed that the initiative will provide a platform for women and their families to access counselling and communicate or resolve issues, if any.