Tamil Nadu BJP leader and actor Khushbu Sundar said that she was “aghast and horrified” by the comments made by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader Saidai Sadiq. She also remarked that she will approach the women’s commission and that she appreciated Kanimozhi’s apology, but she insists that the Chief Minister, MK Stalin, sacks the leader. 

During a public meeting recently, Sadiq had mocked actors Khushbu, Namitha, Gautami and Gayathri Raghuram and claimed that BJP is dependent on these “actresses” to make inroads in Tamil Nadu. The DMK leader also labelled them “items” in the clip, along with much more misogyny.

In an exclusive conversation with Republic, Khushbu said, “Just saying I’m shell-shocked will be very mild to put it. I’m aghast and horrified by the comments that have been made. This is something which is not acceptable. This man when he speaks you can see on his face that he is very clear on what he is trying to say. He has a kind of sadistic pleasure when he speaks about me, in particular. Then he is trying to justify himself. The kind of words he has used, I cannot even describe or translate into English because it is so so low.”

Saidai Sadiq should be expelled from party, Khushbu tells Republic

Khushbu said that she is pleased that DMK MP and women’s wing secretary Kanimozhi has openly apologised to her but demanded Sadiq’s removal from the party.

“I’m glad that Kanimozhi has apologised to me openly on Twitter. I want this man to be punished and the CM to expel him from the party because when there was a general body meeting conducted by DMK the exact words of the CM were ‘I wake up in horror because I don’t know what kind of words people have spoken towards others’. I want Stalin sir to expel him from the party,” she said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader also affirmed that she will take this issue to the Women’s Commission. “This kind of misogynist hate towards women is not acceptable. I want to ask this person if he is ready to speak the same lines about women in his home and then issue an apology. People like them are black marks to Kalaignar whom I hold in very high esteem.”

Moreover, Khushbu stated that “misogynistic and sexist remarks” against women need to be stopped across party lines and that she would take up this battle if nobody else will.