'Mastered the Art of Degrading Women': Outrage as BJP MP Blames Women for Not Fighting Back During Pahalgam Attack

New Delhi: A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of parliament has drawn criticism for blaming women present during the Pahalgam terror attack for not fighting back, saying they lacked the spirit of warrior women. Opposition parties demanded his dismissal by the ruling party and condemned BJP leaders for making such remarks.

Speaking at an event in Bhiwani on May 24 to mark the 300th birth anniversary of Ahilyabai Holkar, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Ram Chander Jangra said that women who lost their husbands in the Pahalgam attack should have resisted the terrorists.

The attack took place on April 22 at a meadow in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, where terrorists targeted tourists, killing 26. The attackers reportedly singled out male victims after asking them their religion.

“Wahan par jo hamari veerangnay behane thee, jinki maang ka sindoor chheen liya gaya, Veerangna ka bhaav nahin tha, josh nahin tha, jazba nahin tha, dil nahin tha, isliye haath jod ke goli ka shikaar ho gaye (The brave women we had there, whose sindoor was snatched away – they lacked the spirit of a warrior woman, lacked passion, emotion, heart, and so, with folded hands, they became victims of bullets),” Jangra said.

According to PTI, Jangra said the tourists should have fought back.

"Bilkul ladna chahihye tha. Aur agar ladte, to kam shahadat hoti aur kam log maare jaate. Haath jodne se kaun chhodta hai? Wo to maarne ke liye aaye the...Vo to aatankvaadi the. Unke dil mein daya thodi thee. (They absolutely should have fought back. And if they had, there would have been fewer deaths and fewer people martyred. Who spares anyone just because they fold their hands? They had come to kill... they were terrorists. There was no mercy in their hearts),” he said.

Jangra also claimed the casualties could have been reduced if the tourists had undergone military training.

"Agar yaatri training pass kiye hote, to teen ugarvaadi 26 logon ko nahin mar sakte the. (Had our tourists passed the training then three terrorists could not have killed 26 people)," he said.

"Lekin haath jodne se koi chhodta nahin. Hamare aadmi vahan par haath jodkar maare gaye. (But no one spares you just because you fold your hands. Our men were killed there even as they stood with folded hands.”)

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, posting on X, said there was a “competition among BJP leaders to malign the victims of Pahalgam and our brave army.”

“The shameful statement of BJP Rajya Sabha MP Ramchandra Jangra has once again exposed the petty mentality of RSS-BJP,” he wrote.

Kharge reminded that despite controversial remarks made in the past by Madhya Pradesh deputy chief minister Jagdish Devda and minister Vijay Shah about the Indian army and Colonel Sophia Qureshi, both continue to hold office.

“Even when the wife of the naval officer martyred in Pahalgam was being trolled on social media, Modi ji was silent,” he said.

Referring to the recent speech of Indian PM, Kharge added, “You say you have sindoor in your veins…If this is so, then you should dismiss these foul-mouthed leaders of yours for the sake of respect of women!”.

The All India Trinamool Congress also condemned the statement, calling it not only insensitive but “vile and inhuman.”

It wrote on its official social media account that BJP had “mastered the art of degrading women”. “Misogyny isn’t a bug in their ideology, it’s the core. And PM @narendramodi dares to talk about Naari Samman? Spare us the hypocrisy. Women are NOT your vote bank slogans.”

The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.