Political Double Standards Exposed in Dimple Yadav Controversy, Debate Ignites Over Women’s Dignity in Indian Politics

In recent days, the Indian political landscape has been shaken by remarks made against Dimple Yadav, the sitting MP from Mainpuri and wife of Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, by Maulana Sajid Rashidi. Rashidi, whose past support for the BJP is well-documented, referred to Yadav as “sitting naked in a mosque” based on a photo from an event where MPs visited a mosque near Parliament.

The BJP’s women MPs led large-scale protests in Parliament, shouting slogans of “Shame, Shame,” calling the comments an attack on women’s dignity and demanding accountability. BJP spokesperson Bansuri Swaraj criticized the opposition and Yadav’s own party for not taking a strong enough stance, asking, “Why are Akhilesh Yadav and his party silent? Isn’t the dignity of a woman MP more important than political compulsions?”

However, this wave of protest has triggered a wave of counter-criticism. Observers and opposition leaders highlighted BJP’s apparent selective outrage by recalling several recent instances where BJP women MPs were conspicuously silent:

The mass sexual violence in Manipur, when women were publicly paraded naked, did not witness similar outrage or protests from BJP’s women MPs.
The case of Prajwal Revanna, accused of multiple sexual offenses and allegedly supported by BJP leaders, did not see any mobilization of women MPs.
The serial parole of convicted rapist Ram Rahim or the insensitivity shown by Madhya Pradesh BJP Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah, who referred to Kargil war hero Colonel Sofia Qureshi as a terrorist’s sister, also met with silence from BJP’s women representatives.

The Supreme Court has recently reprimanded Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah for not issuing a public apology for his objectionable remarks against Colonel Sofia Qureshi. Despite these controversies, neither a strong protest nor a dismissal from his ministerial post has occurred.

Dimple Yadav herself responded, welcoming stern action and FIR against the Maulana but questioned the selective activism: “Why didn’t BJP’s women MPs protest when Manipur happened, or when inappropriate things were said about our armed forces officers? Why do they only come forth when it’s politically convenient?”

SP MP Iqra Hasan from Kairana termed Rashidi’s comments as highly shameful, stressing that “making such loutish comments about an elected female representative sets a dangerous precedent for the treatment of ordinary women in society.”

Meanwhile, Rashidi tried to clarify his remarks, stating his objection was toward attire not compliant with Islamic traditions inside a mosque. Yet, his language on TV, describing Yadav as “naked,” was widely condemned. Critics accused him not only of misogyny but also of attempting to pit one woman MP against another on communal grounds (comparing Yadav to Muslim MP Iqra Hasan), further polarizing the debate.

Social media scrutiny revealed Rashidi’s BJP connections, including his public declaration of having voted for the party in Delhi. This fact was seized on by critics to ask why the BJP was using a supporter’s bigoted comment to target the opposition and allege ‘Muslim appeasement’ by Samajwadi Party.

Samajwadi Party responded promptly, filing an FIR against Rashidi. Party MP Awadhesh Prasad condemned the remarks as the rantings of a “madman” and reaffirmed Yadav’s status as an inspiration to Indian women.

Conversely, BJP’s Medha Kulkarni and Bansuri Swaraj kept up the pressure, accusing Akhilesh Yadav of political silence and the opposition of double standards.

Civil society commentators underscored further episodes, like the Ankita Bhandari murder in Uttarakhand, which allegedly involved a BJP leader’s son, where no BJP women MP raised her voice for the victim’s family, still awaiting justice.

This episode, critics argue, exposes the transactional and often hypocritical nature of outrage in Indian politics, where women’s dignity is championed only when politically expedient, not as a consistent principle.

As Maulana Rashidi—an open supporter of the BJP—becomes an unlikely flashpoint in this ideological tug of war, the central question remains: Is the fight really for women’s rights, or selectively deployed as a political weapon?