‘Appalling to see such ignorance’: Kavitha on Smriti Irani's 'menstruation' remarks

Terming mensuration as biological reality, Telangana MLC said that denying paid leaves to women during menstruation days "ignores the genuine pain" of women.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha on Friday condemned union minister Smriti Irani's 'menstruation not a handicap' remark saying that she was "disheartened" by the comments as it was "appalling to see such ignorance".

BRS leader K Kavitha (HTtweets-X)

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kavitha said, “Disheartened by the Union Minister of Women and Child Development Smriti Irani Ji’s dismissal of menstrual struggles in Rajya Sabha. As a woman, it's appalling to see such ignorance, for our struggles, our journeys isn’t a consolation, it deserves a level playing field and that’s a non-negotiable.”

"Menstruation isn't a choice; it's a biological reality. Denying paid leave ignores the genuine pain countless women endure," she said.

"As a woman, it's disconcerting to see a lack of empathy for the genuine challenges women face and the fight we have to put up for everything. It’s high time to indeed bridge the gap between policy-making and reality with empathy and reason," she added.

Union women and child development minister earlier this week said that menstruation is not a “handicap” and it shouldn’t warrant a specific policy for “paid leave”.

While responding to a question on the menstrual hygiene policy in the Rajya Sabha, Irani said, "As a menstruating woman, menstruation and the menstruation cycle is not a handicap, it’s a natural part of women’s life journey…We should not propose issues where women are denied equal opportunities just because somebody who does not menstruate has a particular viewpoint towards menstruation."

Earlier, the minister told the Lok Sabha that there is “no proposal under the consideration of the government to make provision for paid menstrual leave mandatory for all workplaces”.