Uttarakhand CM apologises for ripped jeans remark but adds 'torn ones not right'

On Friday, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat apologised for his remark after facing backlash over his "ripped jeans" comment. But at the same time, he repeated his objection to ripped jeans, saying he has no problem with jeans with but wearing "torn" ones is "not right".

Referring to his remark made earlier this week, Rawat said that he had commented that nowadays children bring a costly jean home and then cut it with a scissor. He claimed that he only talked about the environment at home and this applies to him as well. The CM also stressed that he had made the comment at a programme held to keep the children away from intoxicants and other evils. If we inculcate good values and discipline in children, they will never fail in future, he said.

He further said that as he hailed from a rural background and during his schooldays whenever his pant was torn he feared that his teacher would scold him. Due to discipline and values, we used to cover it with a patch, he added. 

Uttarakhand CM's Ripped-jeans remark

Just days after taking charge as Uttarakhand Chief Minister, BJP leader Tirath Singh Rawat sparked a controversy with his comments on women wearing ripped jeans. The newly sworn-in Uttarakhand CM opined that women and girls wearing ripped jeans do not provide the 'right environment' at home for children. Recalling his conversation with a lady on a flight who used to run an NGO, the Uttarakhand CM expressed his distaste for women wearing ripped jeans. Elaborating on the incident, Rawat also said that he questioned the 'cultural values' she imparted to her children by wearing ripped jeans.

“Showing bare knees by wearing ripped jeans just to look like rich kids is the value given now which is just a race towards westernization when the Western world today is following us. Ripped jeans pave the way for societal breakdown and is a bad example parent set for children,” he said at the workshop organized by the Uttarakhand State Commission for Protection of Child Rights in Dehradun on Tuesday.