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Politician Mahua Moitra’s fiery speech in the Lok Sabha garnered a lot of attention, which included misogynistic tweets too, like one that referred to her as "one of the few 'men' in Lok Sabha".
Politician Mahua Moitra’s fiery speech in the Lok Sabha garnered a lot of attention, which included misogynistic tweets too, like one that referred to her as “one of the few ‘men’ in Lok Sabha”.
On Monday, TMC politician Mahua Moitra, known for taking powerful stances, once again delivered a fearless and passionate speech in the Lok Sabha, holding the Central Government accountable on various issues.
Among other things, she rightly pointed out that a former CJI, accused of sexual harassment, presided over his own trial, cleared himself of all allegations, and accepted a nomination to the Rajya Sabha. Her comments caused a lot of uproar in the Lok Sabha.
She added, “The judiciary stopped being sacred when it squandered the opportunity to guard the founding principles of the Constitution.”
The sacred cow that was the judiciary is no longer sacred. It stopped being sacred day a sitting CJI was accused of sexual harassment, presided over own trial, cleared himself & accepted a nomination to Upper House within 3 months of retirement replete with Z+ security cover pic.twitter.com/ODFn2pd2Z1 — Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) February 9, 2021Related Stories Bold, Fierce, & Kickass, TMC MP Mohua Moitra’s Fiery Maiden Speech In Parliament Was Lit! Women In The Lok Sabha Elections 2019: Who Won, Who Lost
The sacred cow that was the judiciary is no longer sacred. It stopped being sacred day a sitting CJI was accused of sexual harassment, presided over own trial, cleared himself & accepted a nomination to Upper House within 3 months of retirement replete with Z+ security cover pic.twitter.com/ODFn2pd2Z1
— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) February 9, 2021
While many took the opportunity to slander her, many appreciated her for taking a powerful stance in the Lok Sabha against the ruling government. Only Mahua, among many opposition politicians, showed the courage to openly call out the ruling party on pressing issues.
While some tweets praised her for showing courage and resilience, they still seemed to be misogynistic.
#MahuaMoitra is just one of only a few 'men' in Lok Sabha. She is46 years oldan MP from Krishnanagar, WBServed as MLA for 3 yrsStudied @ Mount Holyoke College, Massachusetts Worked with JPMorgan Chase in NYC1st joined Congress, then TMCShe rightly called media as "2 paisa" pic.twitter.com/aS61PMZecm — India Muslim History (@syedurahman) February 9, 2021
#MahuaMoitra is just one of only a few 'men' in Lok Sabha. She is46 years oldan MP from Krishnanagar, WBServed as MLA for 3 yrsStudied @ Mount Holyoke College, Massachusetts Worked with JPMorgan Chase in NYC1st joined Congress, then TMCShe rightly called media as "2 paisa" pic.twitter.com/aS61PMZecm
— India Muslim History (@syedurahman) February 9, 2021
By calling her, one of the few ‘men’ in Lok Sabha, not only is the ingrained misogyny being highlighted but the deep rooted regressive belief that only men can be ‘strong, brave and courageous’ is evident as well.
Some quote tweets highlighted the patriarchal mindset evident in this tweet.
Journalist Tanushree Pandey highlighted how problematic this tweet is.
Sorry @zoo_bear, @AltNews, but I'm doing it this time. Fact Check – @MahuaMoitra is not a man or one of the "few men". She's a WOMAN. One of the many strong women this country has. Aadat daalo ek strong, courageous, outspoken aurat ko aurat kehne ka. https://t.co/EMG0BxZ2az — Tanushree Pandey (@TanushreePande) February 10, 2021
Sorry @zoo_bear, @AltNews, but I'm doing it this time. Fact Check – @MahuaMoitra is not a man or one of the "few men". She's a WOMAN. One of the many strong women this country has.
Aadat daalo ek strong, courageous, outspoken aurat ko aurat kehne ka. https://t.co/EMG0BxZ2az
— Tanushree Pandey (@TanushreePande) February 10, 2021
Deepal Trivedi, editor at Outlook very pertinently asked, “Why lower her stature and identity by comparing her with a man?”
Why lower her stature and identity by comparing her with a man?#MahuaMoitra can be a woman and still be bright. Right? https://t.co/zFbVHqsTzO — Deepal.Trivedi (@DeepalTrevedie) February 10, 2021
Why lower her stature and identity by comparing her with a man?#MahuaMoitra can be a woman and still be bright. Right? https://t.co/zFbVHqsTzO
— Deepal.Trivedi (@DeepalTrevedie) February 10, 2021
Author and Journalist Anna MM Vetticad highlighted the patriarchal and regressive aspects of the tweet as well.
https://twitter.com/annavetticad/status/1359460145755918336
And journalist Rohini Singh rightly calls this comment the “usual patriarchal rubbish”.
So basically what this handle is saying is that being a ‘man’ is a sign of courage because women are these weak, pathetic creatures. Usual patriarchal rubbish. https://t.co/mdin3b6dfA — Rohini Singh (@rohini_sgh) February 10, 2021
So basically what this handle is saying is that being a ‘man’ is a sign of courage because women are these weak, pathetic creatures. Usual patriarchal rubbish. https://t.co/mdin3b6dfA
— Rohini Singh (@rohini_sgh) February 10, 2021
Knowingly or unknowingly, we use certain phrases or idioms in our daily lives that are misogynistic and stereotypical.
Phrases like ‘man up’ , ‘to wear pants in the relationship’ and Hindi expressions like “Ye humari beti nahi, beta hai” (she is not just our daughter; she’s our son) further advance the patriarchal mindset and stereotypes which associate adjectives like – dominance, bravery and courage only with men.
These phrases maintain that being compared to a man is a supreme compliment and the ‘ultimate’ standard for a woman.
The need to add men in the quotient when the focus should entirely be on a woman has become a recurring trend in Indian culture and elsewhere. Due to this regressive mindset, which has a habit of downplaying women’s SOLE achievement, misogyny doesn’t seem to go away anywhere.
In another instance, Indian cricketer and captain Mithali Raj shut down a sexist question when asked, “Who is your favourite male cricketer?” to which she replied, “Do you ask the same question to a male cricketer?”
The answer remains no because men are considered the default, their achievements are credited as their own, while women can’t be lauded without adding a man in the quotient.
Image source: YouTube
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After some time, unable to bear it any longer, I signed off from the home lunch. My MIL must've heaved a sigh of relief because my portion of groceries would be saved!
Until I married I had never imagined even in my wildest dreams that my diet/ food intake could assume such alarming proportions and affect conjugal harmony. Having stepped into my marital home I discovered to my bewilderment that the four female inmates were frugal eaters. My spouse and his dad ate moderately well.
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So each morning as I left for work I was served three chapattis with a few spoonfuls of curry. Can you believe this curry catered to the ladies’ lunch the previous day, and dinner for all six inmates? The horror of horrors, it crept into my lunch box too. The chapattis made at the crack of dawn were fine till breakfast but by lunch, they turned leathery; the accompanying curry insipid, tasteless.
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