Smriti Irani said she got the right to vote only because of the Constitution.
Taking a dig at Janata Dal United chief Sharad Yadav, education minister Smriti Irani on Friday said she wondered what would have been the status of women in India had politicians like Mr Yadav been a part of the Drafting Committee of the Constitution.
Referring to a comment by Mr Yadav, the education minister said, "I think it is paradoxical that today Sharadji, a very senior parliamentarian, yet again told me 'sit down, sit down'. Imagine if such a politician was a part of the Drafting Committee."
Participating in a debate on the commitment to the Constitution in the Rajya Sabha, Ms Irani said she got the right to vote only because of the Constitution.
"But imagine, as the Leader of the House said today, what kind of restrictions such a senior parliamentarian would have imposed on a woman like me while this (Constitution) was being drafted," she said.
"Would I have been told 'You have dark complexion, so you don't have right to vote?' Would I have been told 'you have short hair, you have no right to vote?'" Ms Irani asked.
"I see that some are disturbed by what I say. But apart from the social realities that were counted in this very House today, this also is a realty we must embrace, for the victims of such realty do not reside only outside this House, but we have witnessed this in this very House," the 39-year-old minister said.
In March this year, Mr Yadav's comments on Ms Irani had created controversy after she had objected to his offensive comments on women's complexion in Parliament. "I appeal to the gentleman (Yadav) not to make comments on colour of skin of women in this manner," said Ms Irani.
That provoked Mr Yadav to declare, "I know what you are" as Ms Irani and other lawmakers objected strongly.
Two days later, he was forced to express regret for his comments in Parliament and said, "I have the utmost respect for Education Minister Smriti Irani."