Sharad Yadav refuses to apologise, says votes as important as daughters
JD (U) leader Yadav had earlier likened vote to women, while speaking of how important it is to vote.
New Delhi: Janata Dal (United) leader Sharad Yadav on Wednesday clarified his sexist remark while asserting that he did not demean women but drew an analogy between females and votes to state that respect of a daughter is equivalent to respect of a vote.
Yadav said if one does not values his right to vote then it will put democracy in danger.
"What I wanted to say was if the value and respect of a vote is not kept intact then the problems in a democracy will not be solved but will get worse. So, I wanted to say was that respect of a daughter is equivalent to respect of a vote," said Yadav.
"We cast our votes for the welfare of society. So like you safeguard your daughters, similarly one should cast his or her vote with utmost precaution. If the vote goes wrong then you are stuck with the wrong government for five years. And I am not changing my comment, I am ready to debate. They can initiate a judicial inquiry against my speech," he added.
Speaking on the issue of declining trend in electoral politics, Yadav earlier said it is very important to educate people in a big way about how the ballot paper works.
"The honour of being able to cast a vote is a much bigger honour than your daughter's honour. If a daughter's honour is violated, her neighbourhood and her village lose their honour, but if a vote is sold, it is the country's honour that goes. All our dreams for the future evaporate," he added.