advertisement
Last month when Priyanka Gandhi Vadra joined Twitter, some said that she doesn’t have enough credentials to become a politician. She was appointed AICC General Secretary for Uttar Pradesh East by Congress president Rahul Gandhi on January 23.
Yet, despite a woman’s achievements, the conversation around her somehow just gravitates towards ‘what she is wearing’.
Ever since Vadra joined Twitter, a bunch of people commented on how she opts for sarees only when she is on a rally and is dressed in jeans and shirts otherwise. Her previous profile picture also had her dressed in a maroon sari with a long-sleeved blouse.
When one would’ve hoped that people would talk about her speech after her first rally in Ahmedabad, we were only left with rolling our eyes when the most important thing that people discussed about was her sartorial sense on a Twitter display picture!
Some concluded it was an answer to Bharatiya Janata Party leader Harish Dwivedi who shortly after her appointment said:
Clothes aside, how can the ‘husband jibe’ be far behind?
And if you thought the conversation around Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and her saree choices is recent, wait up. Look at these tweets from years ago.
But then there are always some people who save the day!
In fact, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is not the only woman politician who has faced sexism. In the run up to Rajasthan election in December, Sharad Yadav of Loktantrik Janata Dal had said that Vasundhara Raje needs a break because she’s ‘tired’.
Akhilesh Yadav had made a distastefully similar remark on Mayawati:
Time to send our politicians back to a class that teaches them not to be sexist.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)
Published: 14 Mar 2019,11:59 AM IST