Controversy has engulfed Karnataka after Senior Congress leader K R Ramesh Kumar and Assembly Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri’s sexist conversation went viral.
Kumar, a former speaker of the House, said to the Speaker, “There’s a saying… when rape is inevitable, lie down and enjoy it. That’s exactly the position into which you are.” Kageri laughed in response.
A video of the incident has gone viral on social media.
Responding to this, Kageri asked members how he could run the session if time was allotted to everyone. Telling members to take a decision on their own, he looked at former speaker Kumar and said, “I feel, let’s enjoy the situation. I can’t keep this under control and take it forward in a systematic way.”
Later, replying to a tweet about the incident, Kumar apologised and said, “It was not my intention to trivialise or joke about ‘rape!’ My sincerest apologies if I have offended you. But the situation in the House has deteriorated so much that I used that analogy! Will choose my words carefully in the future.”
