Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who has been facing criticism over his remarks on rape law, claimed on Sunday that he only said the truth.
On Friday, Gehlot had said the cases of murder after rape have increased in the country following the law providing death penalty to rape convicts came into force. "Ever since the death penalty (for rape convicts) is brought after Nirbhaya incident, the murders after rape have increased. The rapist sees that the girl will become a witness tomorrow, so he not only rapes but also kills her. This is happening across the country. This is a very dangerous trend," Gehlot had said.
Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi reacted to the remarks on Sunday, saying the CM made fun of her daughter. "It is a very embarrassing statement. It is painful, especially to those families and girls who have been victims such of heinous crimes. He (CM Gehlot) has made fun of Nirbhaya, the law was made by their govt," news agency ANI quoted her as saying.
Defending his remarks, Gehlot said, "I only said the truth. Whenever a rapist rapes a child, they then kill them for the fear of being identified and then taken action against. So many deaths have never happened before."
The BJP had slammed the chief minister over the remarks saying is trying to hide his government's failures to curb rising incidents of atrocities against innocent girls in the state.
Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said that the chief minister's statement is "unfortunate".
"In the last three years, Rajasthan has become the centre for atrocities against young innocent girls. Nothing can be more unfortunate that the issue is being twisted by making controversial statements to hide their failures," said Shekhawat.
Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly Rajendra Rathore said Gehlot's statement is "unfortunate and shameful". He said the statistics of NCRB and police report show that the state ranks first in the country in rape cases. He also claimed that from January 2020 to January 2022, 4,091 cases have been registered under the POCSO Act.
—With PTI inputs
