Nirmala Sitharaman calls Nitish Kumar's remarks 'Shameful' on pulation control

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman criticized Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for his recent remarks on population control, calling them "shameful." Speaking during a campaign event in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, Sitharaman expressed her dismay over the Chief Minister's comments linking women's education to population control. She appealed to the media to question the leaders of the India bloc and Congress family, asking why they did not strongly condemn the remarks. Sitharaman emphasized that the alliance appeared to view women as a vote bank and nothing more, pointing out a woman from their alliance who tried to downplay the issue.

Nitish Kumar had made the controversial comments during a state Assembly session, suggesting that women's education allowed them to control their husbands during sexual intercourse, leading to a decrease in births. Following significant backlash, Kumar issued an apology, stating that he "takes back his words." Despite his apology, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanded the Bihar Chief Minister's resignation, claiming that he had "lost his mental balance" over the issue.