Bengaluru, Karnataka – BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla has strongly condemned the remarks made by Karnataka Home Minister Dr. G Parameshwara regarding the recent sexual assault case involving a woman in Bengaluru. Poonawalla described the Minister’s statement as a display of “the most shocking misogynistic, patriarchal, sexist, and obnoxious mindset,” criticizing his trivialization of the incident that has left the people of Karnataka, particularly women, in shock.
In a statement, Poonawalla expressed his outrage at the Home Minister’s response to the assault case, which has garnered national attention. “The Home Minister of Karnataka has trivialized the incident that has shaken the conscience of the nation and particularly the people of Karnataka and Bengaluru, particularly the women,” Poonawalla said. He added that the comments made by Parameshwara have made many feel “embarrassed and ashamed.”
Poonawalla’s criticism was pointed at Dr. Parameshwara’s suggestion that such incidents are commonplace in large cities. “Three to four days have lapsed since the shocking incident took place, but the Karnataka Police has been unable to catch the accused. Instead of showing seriousness and taking action, there is a statement from the Home Minister of Karnataka, and it appears that he stands by the molester,” Poonawalla stated.
The BJP leader sharply criticized the Home Minister for minimizing the severity of the attack, saying, “The state home minister says that such small incidents happen in big cities. If he lived in the Mahabharata period, he would have said that what happened to Draupadi ji was a small incident. But for the Congress party, an attack on the respect of women is a small incident.”
Poonawalla also pointed out that this was not the first time Parameshwara had made such controversial remarks. He referenced a similar statement made by the Home Minister during the mass molestation incident in Bengaluru on New Year’s Eve in 2017, where Parameshwara had also downplayed the incident as a “small event.” “This is not the first time he has made such a statement. When mass molestation incidents occurred during the 2017 New Year’s event, at the time also, G Parameshwara said that this was a small incident,” Poonawalla recalled.
Expressing his dismay at the Congress party’s decision to appoint Parameshwara as Home Minister again, Poonawalla added, “Today, Congress has appointed such a person as home minister again. Again, he’s showing the same mindset.” His comments have sparked further outrage, especially as the incident continues to demand swift action from law enforcement and government officials.
The remarks from both the BJP leader and the Home Minister have ignited a heated political debate, with calls for greater accountability and sensitivity from public officials in handling cases of sexual violence. As the investigation into the Bengaluru assault continues, the controversy surrounding Parameshwara’s comments remains a significant talking point in the state’s political discourse.
