Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut’s candidature from the Mandi constituency of Himachal Pradesh for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections erupted in a political controversy after Congress leader Suprita Shrinate shared an objectionable post against the BJP candidate on Instagram.
“Can someone tell what is the current rate in Mandi (market)?” the post read, next to a picture of Kangana Ranaut who was fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party from Mandi, her home state.
‘Every woman deserves dignity’
Reacting to the post, Kangana said, “Dear Supriya ji, In the last 20 years of my career as an artist I have played all kinds of women. From a naive girl in Queen to a seductive spy in Dhaakad, from a goddess in Manikarnika to a demon in Chandramukhi, from a prostitute in Rajjo to a revolutionary leader in Thalaivii.”
The BJP candidate said every woman deserves dignity and people should free their daughters from the shackles of prejudices, and rise above the curiosity about their body parts.
“We must refrain from using sex workers challenging lives or circumstances as some kind of abuse or slur…,” she added.
‘Kangana you keep shining’
The National Commission for Women (NCW) condemned Shrinate’s post against Kangana in a letter sent to the Election Commission of India (ECI). It called for ‘strict action’ against the Congress spokesperson and party leader HS Ahir for their derogatory social posts against the actor.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), NCW wrote, “NCW is appalled by the disgraceful conduct of Ms. Supriya Shrinate and Mr HS Ahir. Such behaviour is intolerable and goes against the dignity of women. (NCW chief) Rekha Sharma has sent a letter to ECI demanding immediate and strict against them. Let’s uphold respect and dignity for all women.”
“You (Kangana) are a fighter and shining star. Keep shining, all the best. Writing to ECI,” Sharma wrote on the microblogging site.
‘How this happened’
Hours later, Supriya Shrinate gave a clarification in a video statement, saying many people have access to her social media accounts. “Someone from there made this inappropriate post,” she said.
“Everyone who knows me, also knows very well that I can never make personal and indecent comments towards any woman. I wanted to know how this happened,” the statement read as quoted by Hindustan Times.
Gujarat Congress leader Ahir also gave a similar explanation, saying someone else shared this disgusting post from his X account.
“Someone who had access to my X accounts posted an absolutely disgusting and objectionable post, which has been taken down,” he said.
‘Supriya should be sacked’
BJP leaders Shehzad Poonawalla and Amit Malviya on Monday slammed Supriya Shrinate over a “disgusting comment” about actor Kangana Ranaut from her account – which she later said had not made – and demanded that the Congress leader should be immediately sacked.
“Congress’s Supriya Shrinate makes an obnoxious comment on Kangana Ranaut in an Insta post. It is so disgusting that one can’t help, but ask – how does Congress collect so much filth in one place? If Kharge has any say in the party, he must sack her immediately or else resign,” Malviya said.
Shehzad Poonawalla said that the comments made by Shrinate were despicable. “The comments by Supriya Shrinate on Kangana Team are despicable! Should be immediately sacked. Will Priyanka Gandhi speak up? Will Kharge ji sack her! Where is the “Hathras” lobby now? First they justified Sandeshkhali, then Lal Singh getting a ticket from Congress and now this,” he said.
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Published: 26 Mar 2024, 07:44 AM IST
