In a time when the world is slowly but steadily waving the flag of women empowerment, Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat came up with a series of sexist reasons for keeping women out of combat roles in the army.
Speaking to News18 in an exclusive interview, the 60-year-old said that women have the responsibility to raise their children. Highlighting the brutal consequences at the battlefield, Rawat added that our country is not prepared to see bodies of women coming back in coffins.
“A lady who died was in service for 7-8 years. She has a kid of 2 years. He is in Delhi or Chandigarh and parents are taking care of the baby. So what I am saying is, now do you think we are ready for this?”
“See, I am not saying a women who has children doesn’t die, she can also die in a road accident. But in combat, when body bags come back, our country is not ready to see that.”
Making his argument heavy, Rawat added that putting a woman in a combat role will ask for shielding her separately. Apart from the possibilities of a woman complaining about men ‘peeping’ into her hut, the Army Chief believes that most of the Jawans who come from villages won’t be comfortable in being led by a lady.
“Secondly, what will happen is there is just one woman and rest around her are just jawans. She is very much a commander so she has to do everything. She will have to go for operations. But even today we don’t have that acceptance. Even today our jawans come from villages, so that acceptance will take time.”
“Now when we go to the gym, we all change in the gym clothes in classroom all of us.”
“Now what will happen will be if there will be a lady officer here. Our orders are that a lady officer will get a hut in the COB, then there are orders that we have to cocoon her separately. She will say somebody is peeping, so we will have to give a sheet around her.”
According to Rawat, there were more problems associated with a woman in a combat role. For example, the army cannot give her a maternal leave for six months.
“Ok, so now I make her a commanding officer. She is commanding a battalion. Can that lady officer be away from her duties for 6 months? Then what happens? Do I put a restriction on her to say that in that command tenure you will not be given maternity leave? If I say that, there will be ruckus created.”
Rawat’s comments sparked massive backlash on social media with people terming them as ‘disgraceful’. While some called him an ’embarrassment’, the others slammed him for presuming the Indian jawans to be a group of perverts.
Army chief bipin rawat just called every army man a pervert. How tragic for us Indian women that the men are also aware that women have no guarantee of safety anywhere. Not even at a workplace where integrity,character are apparently valued. #shameful https://t.co/lYbgRFeNj3
— সাইলীনা/Saileena/سیلینا/ਸੈਲੀਨਾ (@saileenas) December 15, 2018
https://twitter.com/lindsaypereira/status/1073923536442572802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1073923536442572802&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fscroll.in%2Farticle%2F905892%2Fan-embarrassment-for-the-country-twitter-reacts-to-army-chief-bipin-rawats-sexist-comments
Either Bipin Rawat seems to hv completely lost it or he nvr had it in d first place.
If at all the women do find Jawans peeping into their bathrooms while they are changing their clothes,shld nt those peeping Jawans b thrown out instead of nt allowing women in combat roles(2/n)
— Sumit (@hi_essdee) December 15, 2018
#BipinRawat says he doesn't have a problem with women combats but the army will. TOH?
He says Indian men will not accept being led by a woman. TOH? Mardo ke comfort ke chakkar main kab tak opportunities deny karoge? #WomeninCombat— Ayesha Bashir (@ayeshabbash) December 16, 2018
https://twitter.com/Dibyendu69/status/1074174987802599425?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1074174987802599425&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.scoopwhoop.com%2Farmy-chief-on-why-women-are-not-ready-for-combat%2F
My goodness! General Rawat is a major, major embarrassment! A woman officer will complain that jawans peep into her hut while she changes clothes and therefore women cannot be given combat roles, says the chief of Indian Army. My ears are red reading this. https://t.co/ZLL63kAzkT
— Manimugdha Sharma (@quizzicalguy) December 15, 2018
Hey @adgpi you realise you're saying women accusing colleagues of sexual harassment, whether in Delhi or elsewhere, amounts to spreading indiscipline which Army can't tolerate? Men are bound to "peep", sexually harass if women are around? Sabarimala argument in Army? https://t.co/b1LeS34BO5
— Kavita Krishnan (@kavita_krishnan) December 15, 2018
Can't give women combat roles, says Army Chief Bipin Rawat: https://t.co/rt9A4AhKrS | In principle, that's just bollocks. Yet there might be cultural factors at play here that need to be considered (by me, at least). India is not Israel or Norway…
— Jaideep A. Prabhu | ג'יידיפ פרבהו (@orsoraggiante) December 15, 2018
https://twitter.com/sarathrajan999/status/1074070516720226304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1074070516720226304&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.scoopwhoop.com%2Farmy-chief-on-why-women-are-not-ready-for-combat%2F
An army general making such comments and givingbinto such stuff is disheartening
— Mark D'Souza -Wandering Armenian (@dsoouzamark) December 15, 2018
Our first Army Chief who has openly declared that Indian army jawans are lecherous & cheapsters to the core. Till now we all were made to belive that Indian army is the most professional & disciplined force in the world.
What a morale booster for our brave & patriotic army!!!!
— Nishant Pant (@nishantpant_in) December 16, 2018
That wasn’t expected, General Rawat. How can you even expect your Jawans to be progressive, with an age-old mentality of your own?