Wearing Bikinis At The Beach Encourages Rape, Says Indian Minister

An Indian government official became the center of women’s right controversy this week after discouraging young women in his area from wearing bikinis at the beach, claiming that this type of swimming apparel invited acts of harassment and rape.

Sudin Dhavalikar, the public works minister in Goa province in India, expressed his opinions about bikinis yesterday during an interview with NDTV. Dhavalikar, who believed that women who wore bikinis at the beach in Goa attracted molesters and other unsavory types, called for a ban of the swimming attire. He said:

“I feel that wearing bikinis should be banned on the beaches,” he said.

“We should not allow such types of people to enter public places.”

He added:

“We should not allow girls with bikinis to enter public places because it is very difficult to control people who arrive in Goa from different states,”

“By the time the victim reaches the police it is too late. It is better to control such type of activities on the beaches,”

Earlier, Dhavalikar was also heard stating the same with women wearing skirts in pubs. He said:

“What will happen to our Goan culture, if we allow this? The scantily-dressed girls visiting pubs project wrong culture and this should be stopped,”

Dhavalikar’s statements were made in support for Sri Ram Sene, a controversial right-wing Hindu group whose members were arrested for charging, assaulting and dragging women by the hair at a pub in Mangalore in 2009. According to the activists, the women in the pub were not abiding by traditional Indian values and had to be called out for being “morally loose”. Two women assaulted by the group were hospitalized

Dhavalikar is a member of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, a political party close to the ruling Bharatiya Janata party. In response to Dhavalikar’s ridiculous statements, their rival Congress party sent Dhavalikar a pink skirt, with a message that says they would not tolerate “moral policing”, according to Sydney Morning Herald.

According to NDTV, Dhavalikar has already issued an apology regarding his statements. Today, Dhavalikar clarified that his intent was only to ensure the safety of women in Goa and not to restrict basic rights and privileges. He said:

“I withdraw the statement if it has hurt anybody. I was misunderstood. I had no intention of hurting women – I was only concerned about their safety,”

[Image from Carlos Andres Restepo Vergara via Flickr]