Female literacy in Rajasthan more important issue: Tharoor on Padmavati controversy

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday highlighted the state of female literacy rate in Rajasthan amid raging protests against the release of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali's magnum opus 'Padmavati'.

The Member of Parliament from Kerala took to Twitter and said education for women in Rajasthan was more important than a "goonghat", as state's female literacy rate was among the lowest in the country.

"Agree totally. The #Padmavati controversy is an opportunity to focus on the conditions of Rajasthani women today & not just of queens six centuries ago. Rajasthan's female literacy among lowest. Education more important than goonghats." Tharoor posted on Twitter.

Tharoor had to put out at a one more tweet later to clarify a confusion after the auto correct feature in his device had autocorrected the word goonghats to 'thang Hoog hats'.

The Rajput Community, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Bajrang Dal and the Karni Sena held a joint protest against the release of the film in Surat on Sunday.

"The government must put a ban on the release of the film because it is portraying Rani Padmavati in an objectionable way. The history has been distorted in this film. The government has to listen to us otherwise everyone will have to face consequences for this. We will not tolerate disrespect to our community," a protestor said in Surat.

Meanwhile, in Maharashtra at least 15 members of the Akhand Rajputana Seva Sangh were detained while protesting on Sunday.

Earlier, the Supreme Court rejected a petition filed against the release of 'Padmavati', saying the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) was yet to issue a certificate to the movie.

The top court had added that the CBFC was an independent body and the court should not intervene in their jurisdiction.

The period drama, starring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh, and Shahid Kapoor, has been facing protests from various Hindu groups for allegedly tampering with historical facts.

The Karni Sena, which demolished the sets of the movie in Jaipur and also thrashed Bhansali, had again warned the director that he would face consequences if the movie distorted historical facts.

The movie is slated to hit the theatres on December 1.