Nitish Kumar hijab row: JD(U) says judge Bihar CM by what he’s done for women

Nitish Kumar

The row over Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s viral video -- showing him pulling down a hijab from a woman's face – continued on Wednesday, with leaders from Opposition parties condemning the act and a group of women activists in Hyderabad lodging a complaint with the National Commission for Women (NCW).

The incident, which happened on Monday at a function where AYUSH doctors were handed appointment letters, sparked an outrage, following which the JD(U) stepped in for clarification.

“Too much is being read into a flash incident. The CM was just asking the AYUSH doctor’s identity. Now, political and religious colour is being given to it. What Nitish Kumar has done for women empowerment and minority welfare should be judged,” JD(U) chief spokesperson Neeraj Kumar told The Indian Express.

More than 1,000 AYUSH doctors were handed appointment letters at the function, and 10 of them, including one, Nusrat Parveen, who was wearing a hijab, received theirs from Kumar at the CM's Secretariat.

Kumar, who was standing on a raised platform, exclaimed upon seeing Nusrat Parveen, "what is this?" and pulled the veil down, exposing her face.

On claims that the AYUSH doctor had refused to join her duty amid the controversy, a health department official told the publication, “Neither has the woman doctor written to us denying the position, nor has anyone from the family issued any such statement.”

While opposition leaders raised questions over Kumar’s mental health, several leaders came out in his support. Minority affairs minister Zama Khan said Bihar CM had acted in a "fatherly" manner when he pulled the hijab off.

"The CM is, perhaps, older than the father of the woman in question. I have a daughter, and I could sense the fatherly affection he had expressed," Khan said.

Union minister Giriraj Singh, meanwhile told reporters, "What's wrong with what he did?"

"If one has come to take an appointment letter, why should she be scared of showing her face? Don't you have to show your face when you go to vote?" he asked.

PDP leader Iltija Mufti strongly reacted to the viral video of the Bihar CM, calling the incident "very shameful" and questioning his state of mind.

Samajwadi Party MP Iqra Hasan expressed concern over the CM’s health, calling the act regrettable. She said, "Regrettably, such an act was done by the person holding the highest position in the state. So the trickle-down effect of this incident could be dangerous. We are concerned about the CM's health, but I think being in such a position of dignity doesn't justify his actions, irrespective of whatever the reasons may be."