Overview
- At a victory event in Chadotar on Thursday, Gujarat BJP president Jagdish Vishwakarma said BJP workers had “snatched seats from the pallu of” Congress MP Geniben Thakor’s sari.
- The remark came as the party celebrated gains in Banaskantha local-body polls and it referenced Congress’s stand on the Nari Vandana women’s reservation push.
- Thakor called the comment offensive, demanded a public apology, and challenged Vishwakarma to face her in Banaskantha in the 2027 elections.
- Rahul Gandhi said the episode showed a “manuvadi, anti-women” mindset, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra called the words “extremely shameful” while voicing support for Thakor.
- The BJP dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s charge as imagined, and no public disciplinary move against Vishwakarma has been reported as both sides tie the dispute to the failed April 17 women’s reservation bill.