Veil-pulling incident: Rakhi Sawant demands public apology from Bihar CM Nitish Kumar

NEW DELHI: Indian actress Rakhi Sawant has strongly criticized Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over an incident in which a Muslim woman’s veil was pulled, and has demanded that he issue an apology.

In a video message posted on social media, Rakhi Sawant said that under the pretext of presenting an award, Nitish Kumar disrespected a Muslim woman. She said the Chief Minister has no understanding of Muslim culture and traditions.

She stated that in Islam, women are instructed to observe the veil, and no one has the right to touch a woman’s veil. Nitish Kumar is a senior politician, she said, and such behavior was not expected of him.

Using strong words in her message, Rakhi Sawant said that if something like this were done to her, one should consider how it would feel. On the one hand there is talk of honoring women, and on the other hand a woman is humiliated—this is unacceptable, she said.

She demanded that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar call the Muslim woman before the media, address her as a sister, and publicly apologize.

Rakhi Sawant added that she respects Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, but cruelty, disrespect toward women, and the humiliation of the burqa cannot be tolerated under any circumstances.

Meanwhile, former Bollywood actress Zaira Wasim said that a woman’s dignity and modesty are not toys to be played with—especially on a public stage.

She said that as a Muslim woman, seeing another woman’s veil pulled so carelessly, along with the casual smile that accompanied it, was extremely angering and painful.

Zaira Wasim said that holding authority does not give anyone permission to cross boundaries, and that the Chief Minister should offer an unconditional apology to the affected woman.