Education Minister Sumana Shrestha has strongly condemned the misogynistic comments made by MPs Rajan KC and Yogendra Mandal during Wednesday's House of Representatives meeting.
During the budget discussion, Congress MP KC accused Women, Children and Senior Citizens Minister Bhagwati Chaudhary of funneling excessive funds to her home district of Sunsari, calling it "gold." KC then made a sweeping generalization that all women ministers are incompetent and narrow-minded.
Independent MP Mandal also made insensitive remarks about marital rape, portraying women as mere "tools to fulfill someone's desires."
In a statement, Minister Shrestha expressed shock at the "irresponsible and 'light'" comments from the two lawmakers on such sensitive societal issues. She objected to their misogynistic speculation and questioned what direction such remarks from supposed leaders will take society.
Shrestha argued that being truly educated goes beyond academic qualifications - it means respecting societal diversity and knowing what not to say to avoid perpetuating harmful biases.
She called for the entire society to be involved in properly educating people, rather than allowing the spread of misogyny. Shrestha pondered whether the offensive statements should be stricken from records or preserved to showcase the depths misogynists can plumb.
The education minister's forceful condemnation has rekindled scrutiny over her previous muted response when UML chief KP Sharma Oli made alleged misogynistic comments about her. Social media critics questioned her inconsistency in calling out misogyny.
