The Congress member Renuka Chowdhury laughed loudly during the Prime Minister’s speech in Rajya Sabha. Later, she was indirectly portrayed as Shurpanakha, a character in the classical epic “Ramayana”.
Although she meekly accepted that remark inside the Parliament, she remained calm and balanced at her censure. After all, women usually have a clear idea of what they want to gladly swallow – or not. When she was ironically compared to a member of Ravan’s clan, the BJP lawmakers in their respective seats were also seen laughing at the remark.
However, the laughing leaders felt no compunction in taking responsibility for this unanimous, discourteous expression. The party’s one woman member in the picture also seems to have been laughing.
What moral was set by the BJP here, which often claims that it has the utmost respect for women? They seemed to have forgotten that the Lankan king Ravan was defeated by Rama – all because Sita had been disrespected.
But, recognising what we do not want is not one and the same as knowing what we feel like. The members’ behaviour with their clear expressions of loud laughter was, in no manner, refined.
Although Renuka Chowdhury’s conduct in several issues was a matter of discussion in the past years, the gesture shown by the BJP men somehow established a bad precedent in the Parliament. What type of message had they conveyed to the countrymen?