Advocate AP Singh, who defends two death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gangrape-murder case, has kicked up another controversy with his unsavoury remarks.
Representing Vinay and Akshay in the court, Singh on Saturday said rapes can be prevented in India only if celebrations like Valentine's Day and the 'kiss of love' campaign are banned.
The intemperate remarks prove yet again that the lawyer is unperturbed by the outrage triggered by his shocking comments on rape and women in the BBC documentary on Nirbhaya case.
In his latest outpouring, Singh told : "To stop rapes, ban celebrations like Valentine's Day and 'kiss of love' campaigns. This is all blind imitation of the West and doesn't at all suit the Indian culture. In their stead, festivals like Bhai Dooj, Raksha Bandhan and Mata Pita Ki Puja (an event to worship one's mother and father) should be celebrated across the country on a grand scale to inculcate cultural values in today's youth."
Surprisingly, the remarks came within hours of the Bar Council of India (BCI), the apex body regulating the legal profession and conduct of advocates in the country, issuing a show-cause notice to Singh and another defence lawyer M.L. Sharma for their tasteless comments in the BBC documentary. In the film, they had blamed Nirbhaya for the incident and made grossly offensive comments about rape, rape victims and women in general.
The lawyers have been asked to reply within three weeks as to why their licences not be cancelled for these utterances. The decision came after a meeting of the BCI executive committee, which found a "prima facie case of professional misconduct" against the lawyers.
In the documentary, Singh refers to his controversial comments made during the trial stage: "If my daughter or sister engaged in any pre-marital activity and disgraced herself and allowed herself to lose face and character by doing such things, I would most certainly take this sort of sister or daughter to my farm house and, in front of my entire family, I would put petrol on her and set her alight." Then, he added: "I still stand by that."
