‘Boys and girls interact more… ‘: Mamata Banerjee’s 2012 statement on why rapes happen goes viral | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: In the wake of the Kolkata doctor rape-murder incident, a massive crowd has staged a fiery nationwide protest against the system. Public outrage has also surfaced over on social media, where criticism has been directed at West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.
A 2012 statement of hers has resurfaced, in which she attributed the rise in rape cases to increased interaction between boys and girls.
Mamata had said, “Rape cases are on the rise because boys and girls interact more freely now. Earlier, if men and women held hands, they would be caught and reprimanded by parents, but now everything is so open. It’s like an open market with open options.” The statement has reignited public anger, fueling the upcoming protests.

She had made the statement in reaction to a 2012 gang rape case in a moving car that took place in Kolkata’s Park Street area. She called it “shajano ghatana” (fabricated incident) meant to embarrass the government.

She, however, later retracted her statement, blaming the media for distorting her words.
The incident remains a point of contention.
Similarly, a 2022 statement from Banerjee related to a gang rape case in Nadia, West Bengal, also resurfaced, in which she questioned if the alleged gang-rape of a 14 year old was truly a case of rape or a matter of a love affair.

In that case, a 14-year-old girl was gang-raped, and Mamata controversially questioned whether it was truly a case of rape or a matter of the girl having a love affair. Her comments have fueled further outrage, amplifying the demand for accountability and justice in the current crisis.
This is not the first time a politician has made controversial statements on sensitive issue of rape.
In 2014, former UP chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav had made a problematic remark during a rally in Moradabad, where he opposed the new anti-rape law and suggested his party would change the law that mandates the death penalty for rape. Yadav had said, “Rape accused should not be hanged. Men make mistakes.”
Likewise in 2012, a khap leader in Haryana’s Jind district, Jitender Chhatar, had blamed ‘chowmein’ behind growing incidents of rape.
“To my understanding, consumption of fast food contributes to such incidents. Chowmein leads to hormonal imbalance evoking an urge to indulge in such acts,” Jitender Chhatar had said.
The topic of women safety has again come to the forefront, with doctors and nurses joining the call for justice for the woman who was found dead, reportedly in a half-naked condition, in the seminar hall of the Bengal government-run RG Kar College and Hospital.