Trinamul Slams Giriraj Singh's "Misogynist" Remarks, Demands Removal from Union Cabinet

Leading the charge, the Trinamul Congress staged demonstrations throughout Thursday in New Delhi and Calcutta to voice their displeasure over Giriraj Singh's "misogynist" comments directed at Mamata Banerjee and to seek his departure from the Union government.

Despite the chief minister's silence on the subject, six female MPs from her party staged a quiet protest in front of the Gandhi monument in the New Delhi Parliament complex. At this Hazra crossing, the Trinamul women's wing organized a quiet protest.

Trinamul, led by Industry Minister Shashi Panja, strongly denounced the Union Rural Development Minister and his party for their divisive word choice.

"We are furious and question the BJP about who granted them permission to disparage a lady. In addition to delaying the necessary compensation for 21 lakh MGNREGA workers in Bengal, including women, the minister is also making deplorable comments against the nation's only female chief minister, Panja said.

Singh made a controversial comment regarding Mamata's dancing on stage at the Kolkata International Film Festival opening the day before, with Bollywood stars Salman Khan, Sonakshi Sinha, Mahesh Bhatt, and Anil Kapoor, in an interview with ABP Ananda on Wednesday.

Mausam Noor, a member of the Rajya Sabha from Trinamul, said, "We here demand his immediate removal from the Union cabinet," in front of the Gandhi monument in the Parliament complex.

"After this, he has no place there," Noor said. The demonstration was also attended by the party's MPs for Joynagar, Arambagh, Birbhum, Calcutta South, and Krishnanagar, Mahua Moitra, Satabdi Roy, and Mala Roy.

The issue with the BJP and its ministers is this. They have no shame at all. They detest women, that much is certain. They are unable to deal with women in leadership and positions of responsibility. They are fundamentally sexist, Moitra said.

Singh swung from defiance to denial within hours of the interview being on television, insisting he had never spoken the slur that set off the scandal.

The amusing thing is that, Mr. Singh, while he states this in writing, he later claims, "mainey toh... nahi kaha (but I did not say...)" in the evening. They are thus complete liars. Every time a member of the BJP speaks, from the top cabinet minister to the lowest employee, they are lying, according to Moitra.

"We anticipate an apology, but because he is now saying he didn't even say it, he will never provide it. We just want India to be aware of the sexism and patriarchy that the BJP practices," she said.

But the state leadership of the BJP stepped up their stance on the issue.

The Assembly's chief opposition figure, Suvendu Adhikari, declared: "The issue of Giriraj Singh is very clear." I agree with what he stated.

Adhikari attempted to defend Singh by arguing that Mamata, the chief minister, was the target of the words, rather than the man.

"He made the statement about the chief minister. On the Assembly grounds, the MLA from Nandigram said, "It was not a personal attack."

He continued, saying, "The chief minister should have concentrated on the important issues, but she is focused in other directions, like entertainment."

Trinamul gave a scornful reply. "The opposition leader has given Singh's remarks his blessing. At the Hazra crossing protest, Industry Minister Panja said, "The BJP is endorsing these statements, which focus on hatred against women and are aimed at women's disempowerment."