A video of Union Minister Savitri Thakur writing the slogan “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” in Hindi on a whiteboard has drawn widespread attention. During a “School Chalo Abhiyan” event in Dhar, Madhya Pradesh, on Wednesday, the BJP leader misspelled the slogan, prompting the Opposition to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Central government over the educational qualifications of his ministers.
The Centre’s “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” scheme was launched in 2015 to address the declining child sex ratio and promote girls’ education.
Thakur, the newly sworn-in Minister of State for Women and Child Development and a Lok Sabha representative from Dhar, wrote “Beddi Padao Bachav” instead of the correct slogan. After the video went viral, the Congress questioned her educational background. Her affidavit reveals she has studied till Class 12.
Senior Congress leader KK Mishra called it a “misfortune of democracy.”
“It is the misfortune of democracy that people who hold constitutional posts and are responsible for big departments are not competent even in their mother tongue. How can they be capable of running their ministry?” Mishra said.
He even proposed a constitutional amendment to set minimum educational qualifications for candidates entering the parliament.
“On the one hand, the country’s citizens are being claimed to be literate, while on the other hand, there is lack of literacy among the responsible people. So what is the truth? This is an issue related to the system and not to any individual,” he added.
Defending Thakur, Dhar district BJP president Manoj Somani accused the Congress of having “petty and anti-tribal thinking.”
“Savitri ji’s feelings and sentiments are pure, but Congressmen are not able to keep their sentiments pure. The tribal community will not forgive the insult of a tribal woman,” he said.
Claiming that the BJP does not want educated leaders, Umang Singhar, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly and a tribal leader from Dhar, said that this incident reflects poorly on PM Modi’s choice of ministers. Singhar said, “What kind of leadership is this? Does Prime Minister Narendra Modi want only rubber stamp ministers in his government? There is no set standard for how a public representative should be, but at least it should be literate,” he said.
“It can be understood what the children must have felt when they saw her writing incorrectly. What kind of leadership will she provide in the central government can only be imagined. Voters should have thought before electing such a public representative,” he said.
