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Modi Offers Backhanded ‘Despite Being a Woman’ Compliment to Bangladeshi Prime Minister

The Indian leader’s unfortunate choice of words sparked criticism and a debate about his commitment to combatting his country’s sexual assault epidemic.
Photo via EPA

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded his trip to Bangladesh on Monday by praising his counterpart, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, for maintaining a zero-tolerance stance on terrorism "despite being a woman."

While the backhanded compliment sparked criticism and a debate about Modi's commitment to combatting India's sexual assault epidemic, the trip wasn't a complete disaster. The two countries finalized an agreement over a disputed 2,500-mile stretch of border, a historic deal that gives citizenship to more than 50,000 people who have been stateless for nearly 70 years.

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But Modi's unfortunate choice of words left a bad taste in the public's mouth, and gave rise to the Twitter hashtag #DespiteBeingaWoman. Some used the hashtag to describe Modi's slip-up as symptomatic of what they describe as India's culture of misogyny and sexism. Others treated it with sarcasm and humor.

Related: India's Government Doesn't Seem to Care That Husbands Can Legally Rape Their Wives

— Sharmistha Mukherjee (@Sharmistha_GK)June 8, 2015

How can you even say or think— Amena (@Fashionopolis)June 8, 2015

I am tweeting about politics— Kanika Kumar aka KK (@nskathy)June 8, 2015

Modi's comment stands in stark contrast to the promises he made in his Independence Day speech last year. Standing in front of a huge crowd in Delhi, Modi spoke for an hour in Hindi, championing women's rights and promising to address sexual violence against women and other gender-related issues.

Horrific incidents such as the rape of a 71-year-old nun during a robbery in West Bengal earlier this year, and the fatal gang rape of a female medical student on a Delhi bus in 2012 have made sexual violence against women part of the national conversation in India, and an internationally recognized issue.

Related: An Epidemic of Brutal Sexual Assaults Is Terrorizing Women in Bangladesh

Earlier this year, filmmaker Leslee Udwin released India's Daughter, a documentary that examines gender and rape in light of the Delhi bus incident. A Dehli court later banned the film, leading to allegations that the Indian state is complicit in the culture of sexual violence. In an interview with Time in May, Modi defended the decision, arguing that publicizing details about the incident would be disrespectful to the deceased victim, and would undermine the justice system.

According to figures from India's National Crime Bureau, rape is the fourth most common crime in the country. In a 2010 survey conducted in Delhi by UN Women, 66 percent of respondents reported having experienced sexual harassment.

Since the public blunder in Bangladesh, Modi's supporters have generated a hashtag of their own: #ModiEmpowersWomen, further underscoring the divisiveness about whether the Indian leader is serious about tackling gender-based violence and inequality.

Follow Tess Owen on Twitter: @misstessowen