Two Political Parties Are Throwing Sexist Comments Around On This Picture Of A Woman Officer In A Liquor Store. Why?

Have you ever tried to buy booze from a local wine shop? For a girl, it’s a scary experience. There was a time when a girlfriend of mine and I wanted to buy some beer. We walked up to the wine shop which was surrounded by men. As soon as they realised that two girls were there, everything just came to a standstill and they were looking at us with a puzzled look and the judgement in their eyes was so evident. How dare two girls be out at 11 pm buying beer?

The thing is, I don’t think society can handle the fact that women drink. It’s an unfathomable thing for a woman to be associated with alcohol in any way. For them, it’s like with every sip our dignity is getting tainted or something and it’s okay for them to draw the worst conclusions about us just because we like our beer cold and our whisky on the rocks. 

And now, in Madhya Pradesh, this utterly sexist behaviour has turned into a political shitfest. 

यह तस्वीर लज्जित करती है;

शराब बेचने को आतुर शिवराज सरकार ने अब महिलाओं को शराब की दुकानों पर बिठाकर हमारी बहन-बेटियों के प्रति अपनी घृणित और कुत्सित सोच का प्रदर्शन किया है।

शिवराज जी,
हमारी संस्कृति नारी की पूजा करवाती है,
और आपकी संस्कृति नारी से शराब बिकवाती है..? pic.twitter.com/T695lx9n6n

— MP Congress (@INCMP) June 11, 2020

On Thursday, the official Twitter account of the Madhya Pradesh unit of the Congress Party shared a picture of a woman wearing a police uniform and sitting in what seems like a liquor store. The tweet read that under the BJP government women are being made to sell alcohol and that is not only a huge insult to women but also very shameful. 

The tweet, loosely translated from Hindi, read “This picture is very shameful. Shivraj government is so eager to sell alcohol that it’s making women sit at liquor shops. This shows their disrespectful mindset towards mothers and sisters. Shivraj ji, our culture worships women. Does your culture make women sell alcohol?” 

Already that tweet is so problematic. Our culture may worship women or something like that but it treats them horribly. We just wanted to be treated like equals and if that involves sitting at a freaking liquor store, then so be it. It would be so great if you could just take your nose out of it.

Now, this was a dirty play from the Congress and completely refuted by the BJP. They say that she is actually from the excise department as is not selling alcohol but conducting an inspection. 

Assistant commissioner (excise), Sanjeev Dubey, as saying, “No women are deployed at any liquor shop.” He further added, “ They are excise sub-inspectors and such others. They are a part of the inspections only. If anyone is claiming that women employees are deployed at liquor shops, then it is completely wrong.” 

He told TOI that women officers were inspecting the stores and weren’t there to sell alcohol.  

Also Read: In MP, There Will Be Women Friendly Liquor Stores. It’s Supposed To Be Good, But The Reality Is That It Reeks Of Sexism

मध्यप्रदेश सरकार द्वारा शराब की बिक्री के लिए महिलाओं को ड्यूटी पर लगाने का शर्मनाक फ़ैसला नारी की अस्मिता, सुरक्षा और उसके सम्मान के खिलाफ है। सरकार को चाहिए कि वह अपने इस गैर-जरूरी और अविवेकपूर्ण निर्णय को अविलंब वापस लेकर जनभावनाओं का सम्मान करे।

— Shobha Oza (@Shobha_Oza) June 10, 2020

I don’t understand, even if a woman was selling alcohol, what is the problem? This is such bullshit. Let’s get something clear- it’s not insulting, shameful or any of those things for a woman to be in a liquor store selling, buying or even chugging bottles of alcohol. Claims like this really make me question the mentality that prevails in our country. 

Not only the MP Congress office but Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza took to Twitter to criticise the fact that women were deployed to in liquor stores to sell alcohol. She said, “Shameful decision of the Madhya Pradesh government to put women on the duty for the sale of liquor is against the dignity, safety and honour of women. The government should immediately take back this unnecessary and unreasonable decision and respect the public sentiments.”  

You see, the thing is that the state government has decided to run 70%of the liquor shops in the state. The contractors have already submitted their licences amid an ongoing legal tussle with the government. 

Whatever the problem is, being sexist is not the answer. I don’t know if you realised but not only the Congress’ accusations but even the BJP’s defense reeks of misogyny. Both the parties behaved that a woman selling alcohol is the end of the world. We keep hoping the situation for women in our country gets better but this is what our politicians are doing. 

We don’t know exactly why that woman officer was in the store but the question is not if she was selling or inspecting. The question here is why was the reaction so fucking sexist?

https://thehauterfly.com/lifestyle/ram-gopal-verma-gets-slammed-after-posting-a-sexist-tweet-about-women-buying-alcohol-whats-with-this-misogyny/