Dehradun: Tirath Singh Rawat, the newly sworn-in Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, created quite a controversy when he criticised women wearing ripped jeans, and said they cannot provide the right environment for children at home. Soon after, angry social media users slammed his ‘misogynistic and patriarchal’ comments aimed at dress policing and called his mentality ‘ripped’. Reacting to his statement, a social media campaign with hashtags such as #GirlsWhoWearRippedJeans and #GreetingsFromMyNakedKnee are currently trending on Twitter. Social media users especially women are now sharing photos of themselves in ripped jeans, as mark of protest.

The trend soon after journalist Nishtha Gautam called on women to share their pictures in the outfit, condemned by the CM. ‘ She wrote, ”I hope some of you remember the #GirlsWhoDrinkBeer hashtag from 2018 as a response to Goa CM’s statement. It’s that time of the year again: Another CM, another attempt at policing women’s choices. Let’s tweet our #rippedjeans pics with #GirlsWhoWearRippedJeans. What say?”

Notably, a similar trend had gone viral in 2018, after Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said that women drinking beer was a cause of worry for him.

Reacting to her call, singer Sona Mohapatra commented, ”I don’t wear jeans owing to the humidity & heat here but happy for this ripped T shirt with my संस्कारी घुटना’s showing!..& #GirlsWhoWearRippedJeans don’t need anyone’s permission in #India . We are the land of the glorious Konark, Khajurao, Modhera, Thirumayam, Virupaksha!”

Here is how other women are protesting:

Tirath Singh Rawat was sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Uttarakhand last Wednesday after the resignation of Trivendra Singh Rawat.

What exactly did he say?

On Tuesday, while attending a workshop, Rawat expressed shock on seeing a woman running an NGO in ripped jeans, and said he was concerned about the example she was setting for society. Singling her out, he remarked,”If this kind of woman goes out in the society to meet people and solve their problems, what kind of message are we giving out to the society, to our kids? It all starts at home. What we do, our kids follow. A child who is taught the right culture at home, no matter how modern he becomes, will never fail in life.”

Holding parents responsible for “westernisation” of young children, Rawat further said: “Showing bare knees, wearing ripped denim and looking like rich kids — these are the values being given now. Where is this coming from, if not at home? What is the fault of teachers or schools? Where am I taking my son, showing his knees and in tattered jeans? Girls are no less, showing their knees. Is this good? All of this, in a mad race of westernisation. While the western world follows us, doing yoga … covering their body properly. And we run towards nudity.”