Karnataka Health Minister K. Sudhakar on Sunday waded into controversy by claiming that Indian women want to stay single, and that "even after marriage, they do not want to give birth to children, and are opting for surrogacy", adding this was "not a good development". However, Sudhakar's statements did not go down well with women's organisations, which condemned the generalised statement, stressing that women are free to decide whether to have a child or not.

In his address on the occasion of the World Mental Health Day at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurological Sciences (NIMHANS), he also said: "I am sorry to say this, there is a paradigm shift in our thinking which is not good. To come out of everyday stress is an art. Yoga and meditation are the solutions. However, people are following western culture. This stress load must be put out and taking a walk for half an hour in the parks will help a lot in this direction."