Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Wednesday suggested that the ruling Congress Party should set its own record on women safety right, rather than highlighting or speaking about the alleged Snoop Gate case in Gujarat.
Modi told Smita Prakash, Editor (News) Asian News International (ANI), in an exclusive interview held here: "If you look at the records of crimes against women, out of the first the ten states in the country where the rate is the highest, seven are being ruled by Congress governments, and three are partner states of the UPA."
"Not even one of them belongs to the BJP in that list of the first ten states, and no state belongs to a BJP ally. This is a very satisfying and pleasing record for the BJP, when it comes to dealing with crimes against women," Modi said.
"In our country, crimes against women are not limited to any one family or individual. It is a matter of shame for the entire humanity. It is affecting the image of India across the whole world. That is why, as a government, as a country, as a part of human society, we should try to be more sensitive on this issue," he added.
"If there is a Modi Government, then it too should be sensitive. This issue should be kept away from political bickering. The dignity of women should be our priority. I should not abuse the Congress on this issue, nor Rahul Gandhi. I think we will keep on doing our politics, but it will be our mothers and sisters who will continue to suffer, and be insulted. For God's sake, I appeal to everybody (to work to stop such crimes)," Modi said.
Indirectly recalling Samajwadi Party leader and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's controversial statement that there should be a more forgiving and lenient approach towards rapists, the BJP prime ministerial candidate said: "Recently, Mulayam Singh said something, and then there was the Nirbhaya case going on in Delhi. The media asked me repeatedly, but I maintained that my priority is just ensuring a woman's dignity. If I am blaming other political parties, I am forgettting that I am hurting the dignity of women. That is why I ensure that my thinking is apolitical on this issue.
