Senior BJP leader Vinay Katiyar on Wednesday said there were “more beautiful women star campaigners than Priyanka [Vadra]” and Ms. Vadra made a quick retort, saying Mr. Katiyar's remarks exposed the BJP’s mindset towards the better half of the country’s population. The Congress also sought an apology from him for ''insulting women''.

Ms. Vadra is one of the star campaigners of the Congress for the coming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections and has played an important role in forging an alliance between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party.

Ms. Vadra said, “If that’s all BJP sees in my colleagues who are each strong, brave and beautiful women that have battled through all sorts of hardships to get where they are, then he makes me laugh even more. Because he exposes the BJP’s mindset towards the better half of the population of India!!!.”

Earlier, Mr. Katiyar said, “It doesn’t matter... there are girls and women who are more beautiful than her [Ms. Vadra] and are also star campaigners. Some of them are artists and heroines... they are more beautiful than her.”

Later talking to reporters, he tried to downplay his remarks, saying it was an internal matter of the Congress as to whom they want to appoint as their campaigner.

But, he added that if the Congress is under the “impression that they have the beautiful face of Priyanka for campaigning, then to counter that the BJP also has many beautiful faces which it may ask to campaign for.”

However, he said, “...It is wrong and unfair to compare beauty with capability but the Congress is doing this.”

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the BJP has “insulted” India’s womanhood and such conduct, behaviour and words proved its mentality. The BJP has insulted India’s womanhood. Such conduct, behaviour and words prove BJP’s mentality. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah should apologise,” he said.

Mr. Surjewala said the BJP-RSS combine suffered from a “deeprooted and retrograde anti-women mindset. There is a long list led by Mohan Bhagwat and Kailash Vijayvargiya“.

“Disparaging and atrocious remarks of Vinay Katiyar on Priyankaji reflect the petty and insulting culture of the BJP that commodifies women. To adjudge India’s women by physical features and not by their capacity, capability, strength and sacrifice proves the lowly BJP mentality,” he said.

If Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah have any respect left for women in the country, they should display courage by initiating strict action against Mr. Katiyar for his remarks. Otherwise women would show their power by voting against the BJP, he said.

Ms. Vadra’s husband Robert Vadra attacked the BJP leader and demanded that Mr. Katiyar publicly apologise for his “misogynist” and atrocious” remarks.

“Shocked at misogynist and atrocious remarks of BJP MP Vinay Katiyar saying there were ‘prettier star campaigners’ in his party than Congress’s Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. This exposes the shameful mindset of some of our political leaders. We all need to respect women and accept them as equals instead of commoditising and objectifying them. As a society, we need to bring in a change. Vinay Katiyar should publicly apologise for his remarks,” Mr. Vadra said in a Facebook post.