'Woman wearing less clothes impact men unless they are robots': Pak PM's remark on rape draws flak

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan is again in the middle of a storm after he faced severe backlashes for his comment where he blamed women's clothing for the rise in rape and sexual assault in the country. The video was widely shared on social media.

"If a woman is wearing very few clothes, it will have an impact on the men, unless they are robots. It’s just common sense," Imran Khan said in an interview with 'Axios on HBO'. "This is cultural imperialism. Whatever is acceptable in our culture, must be accepted everywhere else. It's not," he added.

His interview soon went viral, drawing flak over his opinion. Imran Khan's comments have caused massive outrage on social media, with opposition leaders and journalists expressing anger and disgust against the misogynistic ideology.

In April, during a question and answer session with the public, Imran Khan had said that the rise in sexual violence in Pakistan, particularly against children, was caused due to 'fahashi' (vulgarity). "This entire concept of purdah is to avoid temptation. Not everyone has the willpower to avoid it," he said.

Hundreds of people mobilised demanding an apology from Imran Khan for his views and held a protest in Islamabad. The protestors criticised the PM for what they called 'victim-blaming' and demanded an apology for the comment.

Official statistics in Pakistan have revealed that at least 11 rape incidents are reported in the country every day, with over 22,000 cases reported to the police in the last six years. However, only 77 of the accused have been convicted which comprises 0.3% of the total figure, reported Geo News.