An Indian minister has sparked outrage by suggesting that a "mass molestation" of women in one of the country's busiest nightlife hubs took place because they dressed "like westerners".

Multiple women were groped during New Year celebrations in Bangalore, the capital of India’s southern Karnataka state, according to local and social media reports.

Photographs of distraught women rushing out of crowds and seeking help from police appeared on both.

But Karnataka State Home Minister, G Parameshwara, caused uproar after said the alleged attacks were the result of Western influences.

“They tried to copy the Westerners, not only in their mindset but even in their dressing,” he said. “So some disturbance, some girls are harassed, these kinds of things do happen.”