Azmi says misquoted on rape remark by media
Abu Azmi claimed he was hinting to references in Islam, which punishes sex outside marriage even if consensual. “I never said rape victims should be hanged,” he said
MUMBAI: Days after he was quoted saying “women who have sex outside marriage should be hanged”, Samajwadi Party chief in Maharashtra Abu Azmi backtracked claiming he was misquoted by the media.
Azmi said he was hinting to references in Islam, which has provision for punishment for having sex outside marriage even if it is consensual. “I never said a rape victim should be hanged for an illegitimate relationship. In fact, I had pressed upon the need for capital punishment for rapists. What I wanted to insist upon was the unjust cases that are registered against men even after a consensual relationship,” he added.
While addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in Nariman Point, Azmi said, when the capital punishment of Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar, who attacked politician Manindar Singh Bhutta, was commuted to life imprisonment, why should the guilty in cases related to women be given such a severe punishment. He also claimed it was an attempt by the daily to malign his image. “I was not aware that my conversation was being recorded by the reporter and would be used paraphrased. Some utterances were made off the record,” he said.
Azmi, in an interview published on Friday in Mid-Day newspaper, had said, “Rape is punishable by death in Islam. But here nothing happens to women, but only to men. Any women, married or unmarried, goes along with a man, with or without her consent, should be hanged. Both should be hanged.”
The remarks by Azmi created a stir as they came a day after Mulayam Singh Yadav said rape for death was excessive as ‘boys sometimes make mistakes.’