'What about Sharia?' Himanta hits out at Rahul Gandhi over 'Manusmriti mindset'

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday hit out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on patriarchy and the "Manusmriti mindset". The CM asked why Gandhi doesn't speak with the same force against patriarchal practices under Sharia.

Himanta's remarks came after Gandhi, during an interaction with girl students in Pune on Saturday, spoke about patriarchy and criticised what he called the "Manusmriti mindset". He said patriarchy forces women to remain under the authority of male relatives at different stages of their lives.

Reacting to Gandhi's remarks, the chief minister said: "Rahul Gandhi is NO champion of women’s rights. He is simply a Hindu baiter, using the cause of women’s empowerment as a convenient smokescreen to target and discredit Hindu Dharma."

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Himanta questioned why Gandhi does not speak with the same intensity about practices under Sharia.

"Consider this: how many times has he spoken with the same outrage against patriarchal and medieval practices that persist under Sharia? NEVER," he said.

The Assam CM also drew a distinction between the Manusmriti and Sharia. He said the Manusmriti does not have comparable scriptural authority in Hindu Dharma and is not a universally binding code for Hindus.

"Yet ask yourself: how many times does Rahul Gandhi attack the Manusmriti, and how many times does he attack Sharia with the same fervour?" the CM said. He argued that Hinduism's strength lies in its ability to evolve and reform.

Himanta's UCC Challenge

The chief minister also attacked the Congress over its record on women's rights. He accused the party of reversing the effect of the Shah Bano judgment and opposing the law against Triple Talaq.

The BJP leader also alleged that Gandhi, in order to retain political power in Karnataka, ensured that no woman was included in the state Cabinet.

Himanta then posed a direct question to Gandhi.

"If women’s equality truly comes before politics, will he unequivocally support a Uniform Civil Code that guarantees equal rights irrespective of religion?" he asked. "Or will his idea of ‘women’s rights’ continue to begin and end with attacking Hinduism?"