Tabassum Rao, wife of Karnataka's Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, filed a complaint with the Karnataka State Women’s Commission on Friday, October 4, regarding the “derogatory and communal” remarks made by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Karnataka Twitter account.
The complaint followed a tweet, posted in Kannada on the BJP Karnataka's official X handle, that targeted Tabassum Rao in response to a statement made by her husband. Dinesh Gundu Rao had claimed that Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the Hindutva ideologue, may have consumed beef. His comment sparked a backlash from BJP supporters, which soon escalated into communal attacks against Tabassum Rao.
In her letter to the Women’s Commission, Tabassum expressed her distress over the continued harassment. She said, "As the wife of Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, I have been subjected to unwarranted attacks and communal references, simply because of my marriage and my Muslim faith... I find it reprehensible that my personal life and community are being dragged into the political arena."
She also said that she had previously filed a defamation suit against BJP leader Basanagouda Patil Yatnal for his derogatory comments but lamented that such targeted attacks have since become routine.
"Unfortunately, this has become a routine, with BJP leaders and their social media handles targeting me repeatedly," Tabassum wrote, urging the commission to take action against the BJP’s state office-bearers and social media team for defaming her, making communal references, and dragging family members of politicians into political debates.
Tabassum also took to X, tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi and calling out the BJP’s tactics: "BJP's cowardice is on full display. They can't confront my husband, so they drag me into their petty debates. It's shameful that they target family members who aren't even in politics. When will they learn to focus on real issues instead of resorting to cheap tactics?"
Dinesh Gundu Rao's statement on Savarkar
The controversy began after Dinesh Gundu Rao, while speaking to the media on Thursday, said that Savarkar, a Chitpavan Brahmin, was not against cow slaughter.
Dinesh claimed Savarkar ate meat and suggested that the Hindutva ideologue may have even consumed beef, which has been the centre of political debate.
"Savarkar, a 'Chitpavan Brahmin', used to eat meat. He was a non-vegetarian and was not against cow slaughter. Some say that he used to eat beef as well. He openly propagated meat-eating," the Minister stated, drawing sharp criticism from BJP supporters.
This is not the first time Tabassum has been targeted. In September, the Karnataka High Court took strong exception to a prima facie defamatory comment made by BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal about Dinesh Gundu Rao’s interfaith marriage. Yatnal had referred to the Minister as “half Pakistani” because of his wife’s Muslim faith.
The High Court, reprimanding Yatnal for his remark, said, “Just because someone’s wife is a Muslim, can you dub him to be ‘half Pakistani’? This is not the way to talk. This is not correct.”