Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said that women belong to themselves and not to their fathers, husbands or sons, and termed as shameful the Manusmriti's norm that a woman should remain under the authority of male relatives at every stage of her life.
India's biggest strength is the "70 crore unique journeys, unique imagination, unique dreams" of its women, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said, speaking at his party's youth outreach programme ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’.
"I (would) like to quote here the Manusmriti, which says clearly that in childhood a female must be subject to her father, in youth she belongs to her husband and, when her lord is dead, she belongs to her sons. A woman must never be independent. These words are a shame. These words should not have been spoken," Gandhi said.
Women are the country's biggest asset, he said, adding that they should stand for themselves and believe in themselves.
"You belong to nobody, except yourself. You have a relationship with your father, brother, husband, your son, but you do not belong to them, and you belong to yourself," Gandhi said.
He had come to the city not to lecture or discuss politics, but to allow young people to express what they felt and discuss their ideas, he said at the programme held on the ground of a local college where young women were present in large numbers.
{{/usCountry}}He had come to the city not to lecture or discuss politics, but to allow young people to express what they felt and discuss their ideas, he said at the programme held on the ground of a local college where young women were present in large numbers.
{{/usCountry}}Calling on the audience to "break the cage", Gandhi told the youth that every individual is unique and has their own dreams and vision.
"You are unique, you are special, you are individual, and you have your own dream and vision," he said.
Explaining why he considered women a greater asset of the country, Gandhi said, “My logic is that women are by nature more sensitive, more gentle, more compassionate and more forward-looking than men.”
Women were often confined to three identities, daughter, wife or mother, the Congress leader said, adding that while there was nothing wrong with these relationships, these could not be their only identity.
Women become professionals and sportspersons and are active in several fields, but their identities are often defined through their relationships with men, Gandhi pointed out.