Women's panel demands Nitish Kumar's apology for 'cheap language'

The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Tuesday said it "vehemently condemns" Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's remarks in the Assembly on the importance of women's education to control the population and demanded his apology.

The Bihar chief minister, while emphasising the importance of education among women to control the population, put forward a vivid description in the state assembly of how an educated woman can restrain her husband during sexual intercourse.

The NCW said it "vehemently condemns the recent statements made by Kumar in the Vidhan Sabha.

"Such remarks are not only regressive but also egregiously insensitive to women's rights and choices. Bihar's chief minister should issue an apology to women across the country for these deeply offensive remarks," NCW said on X.

The commission's chairperson Rekha Sharma demanded an unequivocal apology from the Bihar chief minister.

"On behalf of every woman in this country, as the chairperson of the National Commission for Women, I demand an immediate and unequivocal apology from Chief Minister of Bihar Nitish Kumar.

"His crass remarks in the Vidhan Sabha are an affront to the dignity and respect that every woman deserves," she said on X.

Sharma said such "derogatory and cheap language used during his speech is a dark stain on our society".

"If a leader can make such comments so openly in a democracy, one can only imagine the horror the state must be enduring under his leadership. We stand firm against such behaviour and call for accountability," she said in the post.