'Mardon ka pradesh': Rajasthan Congress MLA Shanti Dhariwal repeats his 2-year-old comment

JAIPUR: Veteran Congress MLA and former cabinet minister Shanti Dhariwal reignited controversy on Wednesday by repeating his statement that Rajasthan is the state of men ("mardon ka pradesh).
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a programme in Alwar, the 80-year-old MLA from Kota North said, "Rajasthan is a land of warriors. What should it be called if not a state of men?" He said this in reply to a question on whether he stands by the controversial statement he had made in the state assembly more than two years ago, when he was urban development and housing minister in the Ashok Gehlot govt.
While speaking in the assembly in Mar 2022 about rising instances of rape in Rajasthan, Dhariwal had described the arid state as a 'state of men'.The comment had kicked up a political storm, with PM Narendra Modi citing it in all his speeches during the campaigns for the 2023 and 2024 polls, accusing Congress of insensitivity towards women's safety issues.
Shortly after reiterating his position on Wednesday, Dhariwal, however, rushed to clarify it. Speaking to TOI, he said, "I meant that Rajasthan historically is a land of warriors, many of whom were men. So it is called a state of men. But women too are an integral part of this land, and their vital contribution to humanity cannot be denied."