A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament (MP) from Chhattisgarh has triggered a controversy as he said rape of women was 'understandable' but people committing similar crimes with infants should be 'hanged'.
BJP MP Ramesh Bais told reporters: "The rape of women might be understandable but if someone does this to an infant then he should be hanged."
He made the comment while referring to a rape case that involved minor inmates of a government-run residential school at Kanker district in Chhattisgarh.
Bais said: "The Delhi gangrape incident has rocked everyone and made them think over such crimes. However, the incident of Chhattisgarh is a matter of shame."
The Congress, meanwhile, has condemned the BJP MP´s remark.
Congress spokesman Shailesh Nitin Trivedi said Bais remark was ´objectionable´, and ´assault´ on anyone was a ´heinous crime´.
The comments came in the wake of a national outcry over the gruesome gang-rape of a 23-year-old woman on a moving bus in Delhi last month as the victim succumbed to her injuries later.
