"What's Wrong In It?": Congress's BV Srinivas Defends "Darling" Remark

After his remarks about Smriti Irani stirred up a controversy, Srinivas BV, president, Indian Youth Congress clarified on Monday that when price of a gas cylinder was Rs 400, she used to talk about 'mehangayi daayan' and now when the price has reached Rs 1,100, that 'daayan' has now become a darling adding that this is what he said and what was wrong in it?

Mr Srinivas on Sunday, during Congress' Satyagrah near Rajghat, lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party over the inflation issue and said that the party means 'Mehengayi'.

Referring to Union Minister Smriti Irani he said, "In 2014, these people used to say 'Mehengayi Daayan Hai', now Ussi Mehengayi Ko Darling Bana Kar Bedroom Me Bithaane Ka Kaam Kiya (they have made inflation their darling and made her sit in their bedroom)."

The remarks of the Youth Congress president received heavy backlash from the BJP, with party leader Amit Malviya saying that the remarks are "sexist".

Taking to Twitter, he shared a clipping of Mr Srinivas' speech and said, "This uncouth, sexist man is President of the Indian Youth Congress. Darling Bana Kar Bedroom Me... This is the level of discourse, when referring to a woman minister, just because she defeated Rahul Gandhi from Amethi. A frustrated Congress is hurtling down the path of irrelevance."

Besides this, Srinivas' remarks were also criticized by former Defence Minister AK Antony's son, and former Congress leader Anil Antony, who termed the remarks as "shameful".

"This is the 'women empowerment' @INCIndia @INCKerala way. Shameful that someone can speak like this about any woman," Anil Antony said in a tweet.

In reply, the IYC president asked the BJP leaders to play his full speech and not a clipping of it.

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