Union minister Ananth Kumar Hegde, while addressing a rally in Karnataka’s Kodagu, on Sunday said that any hand that touches a Hindu girl should be cut.

“There should be a fundamental shift in our thinking. We should keenly observe what’s happening around us. Regardless of caste and religion, a hand that touches a Hindu girl should not exist,” the minister said.

#WATCH: Union Minister Ananth Kumar Hegde in Kodagu, "We have to rethink about priorities of our society. We shouldn’t think of caste. If a Hindu girl is touched by a hand, then that hand should not exist." #Karnataka pic.twitter.com/4uVNnIrNeu January 27, 2019

Hegde drew criticism in 2017 when said that BJP will “soon change the Constitution” which mentions the word “secular”.

“Some people say the Constitution says secular and you must accept it. We will respect the Constitution, but the Constitution has changed several times and it will change in the future too. We are here to change the Constitution and we’ll change it,” he had said.