Remark on Women’s Skin Color Sparks Controversy in India's Parliament

Politician Sharad Yadav praised dark-skinned women from India's south for good figures. However, all female parliamentarians demanded an apology from Yadav, pointing out that using skin color in debate tactics was disingenuous, at best. He refused to apologize.

NEW DELHI (Sputnik) — The Indian parliament is in an uproar after a member of parliament made a statement referring to the dark-skinned women of the country's south on Monday.

Janata Dal (United) party chief Sharad Yadav said on Friday that although South Indian women were dark-skinned, they had good figures, saying that there were no women "like this here."

"What I wanted to convey [is] that dark-skinned women are more in number not only in India but also in the world," Yadav said, in an attempt to clarify his earlier statement.

Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani objected to Yadav's statement and requested him not to make any further comments on a person's skin color, especially women.

All female parliamentarians demanded an apology from Yadav, pointing out that using skin color in debate tactics was disingenuous, at best. He refused to apologize. "I know what you are," was his response to Irani.

"Who said dark is not beautiful? I have not [said] anything wrong," Yadav told reporters outside the parliament.

He refused to change his stance and said that there should be a debate dedicated specifically to the subject of India's fascination with fair skin. His original comment, "Your God is dark […] but your matrimonial ads insist on white-skinned brides," was made during a debate on insurance issues and was referencing an Indian political district. Yadav's comments have drawn severe criticism from multiple sources.