The Congress on Monday dubbed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement appreciating his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina for fighting against terrorism 'despite being a woman' as derogatory.
"It was Indira Gandhi ji who had held the formation of Bangladesh and Vajpayee ji had praised her in the Parliament calling her 'Durga and here Mr. Modi is saying that Sheikh Hasina fights terrorism 'despite being a woman'. This is derogatory," said Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza.
Prime Minister Modi had during his recent visit to Dhaka praised his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina's courage to fight terrorism 'despite being a woman'.
"It is heartening that Prime Minister of Bangladesh despite the fact that she is a woman is openly saying that she has zero tolerance for terrorism. I would like to congratulate Sheikh Hasina for her firmness to deal with the menace," he said while addressing a gathering in Dhaka.
Prime Minister Modi was talking about cross-border terror from Pakistan and he meant the comment as praise for his Bangladeshi counterpart with whom he vowed to combat terror jointly.