BJD demands action against BJP MLA for sexist slur

Lekhashree Samantsinghar, senior general secretary and spokesperson of the BJD, filed the complaint against Mr. Khatua, BJP MLA from Nilagiri, at the Mahila Police Station in Bhubaneswar. She alleged that Mr. Khatua made the remarks during a media interaction on June 2, in response to her earlier press conference.

“He demeaned my status as a woman politician and publicly portrayed me as a prostitute and a kingpin of a sex racket. His statement about me amounts to outraging my modesty,” Ms. Samantsinghar said in her complaint.

She also said that the MLA’s remarks were not only a personal attack but an insult to all women in politics and society, cutting across party lines.

The BJD strongly condemned the remarks and questioned the silence of BJP leadership, calling it indicative of a larger culture of misogyny and character assassination.

Mr. Khatua was apparently angry at Ms. Samantsinghar for her earlier allegations linking him to elephant poaching and allegedly sheltering criminals in his farmhouse.

‘Sick mentality’

Former Chief Minister and BJD patriarch Naveen Patnaik voiced deep anguish over the incident, calling it “absolutely unacceptable” in a strongly worded post on social media platform X.

“Using a political counterattack to assassinate the character of a woman in public reflects a sick mentality. It sends a message that women must remain silent,” Mr. Patnaik said. He also expressed dismay over the BJP’s silence. 

“What is most distressing is the deafening silence of BJP leaders. Not one of them has condemned the MLA’s hateful comments or held him accountable. This silence exposes the mindset of the ruling party.”

Calling the incident inhumane and rare, even in Odisha’s political history, Mr. Patnaik urged citizens to rise above party lines and confront regressive, anti-women mindsets.

“We must not fail our daughters and mothers. We must expose those who insult women,” he said.

The BJD said it will pursue the matter to its “logical conclusion” and demand that the BJP publicly clarify its position on the comments made by its sitting MLA.