BJP Leaders Question Rahul Gandhi's Remarks on Manusmriti and Women's Rights

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has questioned the remarks made by Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, on the Manusmriti and women's rights.

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey quoted two verses from the Manusmriti that emphasize respect for women, while Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accused Mr. Gandhi of using women's empowerment as a pretext to target Hinduism.

During an interaction with female students in Maharashtra on August 22, 2026, Mr. Gandhi spoke against the "Manusmriti mindset", called on students to "smash patriarchy", and said women belonged to themselves, not to their fathers, husbands or sons.

The Congress party shared a photograph of him with an attributed quote: "The Manusmriti states that a woman must never be independent. But I believe women should be independent. You may have relationships with your father, brother, husband, or son, but you do not belong to them. You belong to yourself."

Responding to the post, Mr. Dubey tagged a message to Mr. Gandhi's X handle, saying: "Reading the Manusmriti may not be possible for you, @RahulGandhi ji. This is a shloka from the Manusmriti; read, understand, and speak. Because of the English language, do you know nothing about India's Vedas, Puranas, scriptures, Ramayana, and Mahabharata?"

Mr. Dubey mentioned two verses from the Manusmriti, along with translations that read: "Where women are respected and worshipped, the gods reside; where they are not respected, all work and noble deeds bring no results."

BJP Leaders Criticize Rahul Gandhi's Remarks

BJP leaders have criticized Rahul Gandhi's remarks on the Manusmriti and women's rights, accusing him of using women's empowerment as a pretext to target Hinduism.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma posted on X, saying: "Rahul Gandhi is no champion of women's rights. He is simply a Hindu baiter, using the cause of women's empowerment as a convenient smokescreen to target and discredit Hindu Dharma."

Mr. Sarma asked how many times Mr. Gandhi had spoken with the same outrage against patriarchal and medieval practices that persist under Sharia, and said that Mr. Gandhi had never spoken out against such practices.

Congress Party's Record on Women's Rights

The Congress party has been accused of betraying women's rights by reversing the effect of the Shah Bano judgment, and of opposing the law against 'Triple Talaq'.

Mr. Sarma alleged that just to "cling to power in Karnataka", Mr. Gandhi had ensured "not a single woman found a place in the State Cabinet".

"So here is a simple challenge to Rahul Gandhi: If women's equality truly comes before politics, will he unequivocally support a Uniform Civil Code that guarantees equal rights irrespective of religion? Or will his idea of 'women's rights' continue to begin and end with attacking Hinduism?" Mr. Sarma said.

The controversy surrounding Rahul Gandhi's remarks on the Manusmriti and women's rights continues to escalate, with BJP leaders questioning his intentions and accusing him of using women's empowerment as a pretext to target Hinduism.