Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma on Monday clarified that his “avoid skirt” remark meant for women foreign tourists came out of concern and there was “no harm in taking caution”. He also said that he was a father of two daughters and he would never tell any woman what to wear and what not to wear.
Mr. Sharma while addressing media in Agra on Sunday said that women tourists visiting India should not wear small dresses like skirts and avoid roaming around late in the night without any escort. He had also said that this was part of the advisory being given to foreign tourists as part of do's and dont's in India. His remark led to huge outrage on social media.
“I had said in the context of visiting religious places like temple. I had talked about respecting religious places like if you go to a Gurudwara you cover your head and take off your shoes before entering a temple,” he told news agency ANI.
“I did not ask anybody what to wear and what to avoid. Our country is a diverse nation. We do not ban anything. But something as part of advisory and precaution is something different. But there is no harm in being cautious because different countries issue advisories from time to time for the safety and security of their citizens and tourists but I did not say anything about what one should wear,” he said.
Before Mr. Sharma could clarify on his remark, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter and took sharp barbs at the Narendra Modi government over the statement of his tourism Minister.
“Women had greater freedom for their clothes of their choice in Vedic times than they have in Modi times,” Mr. Kejriwal tweeted on Monday.