Known for making controversial and bizarre statements, Union Minister Giriraj Singh once again did the same when he commented that the colour of Sonia Gandhi's skin made her the Congress President.
"If Rajiv Gandhi had married a Nigerian and if she wasn't white skin, would Congress accept her as a leader" said Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lok Sabha MP from Bihar's Nawada constituency.
The comment received a lot of flak from the Congress party which immediately demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Strongly condemn sexist and racist remarks made by minister Giriraj Singh referring to Sonia Gandhi. Does the Prime Minister support him?" said a disapproving RPN Singh.
Another rival of the BJP, Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPIM), too castigated Giriraj Singh for his racist comments.
"He is a serial offender. The PM has a duty to publicly correct this situation. What is the PM's Mann ki Baat on this? His silence reflects encouragement," said CPIM leader Brinda Karat.
Singh had stoked controversy during the Lok Sabha election campaign when he said that those who opposed Narendra should go to Pakistan while addressing a rally in Jharkhand's Deoghar district on April 19, 2014. Three FIRs were lodged against him at Deogarh, Bokaro and Patna for his hate speeches.
In another instance, Singh had again sparked a row by asking why all terrorists belonged to one community.
Singh's latest remark came soon after Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Tuesday allegedly advised the agitating nurses that they should not stage hunger strike in the sun because it will make them 'dark' and 'ruin their marital prospects'.
- Manohar
