Mangalore: Selfless Rahul Gandhi future of India - Women Congress

Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje 
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (DV)

Mangalore, Feb 5: "Rahul Gandhi is a selfless leader who is ready to sacrifice his life for this nation. He himself said ‘I love Congress and I live for this nation’. He is the future of India," said Maheshwari, vice-president of All India Women Congress

Speaking after inaugurating the Dakshina Kannada district Women Congress convention and felicitation programme at Town Hall here on Tuesday February 5, she said that since the time of Independence no political party other than Congress has sacrificed its leaders for this nation. "The history of Congress is blended with the blood and breath of this nation. Congress is not only a political party but also a people’s movement," she said.

"Congress has brought about a number of developmental works and enforced laws to empower the status of women in the society. BJP has been ruling this state from five years, but their contribution to women is zero. Congress party’s measures like formation of self-help groups have made a drastic change in the condition of women," she said.

"Congress provided women with their rights - right to her property, right against domestic violence, against exploitation and dowry system. In the Delhi gang-rape case, Congress assured of providing death penalty to the culprits, but BJP is trying to politicalize the issue. BJP is not interested in the development of women. We should pledge to root out BJP and end its regime in the state. Congress even provided 33 percent reservation for women in Parliament, and Sonia Gandhi has said that she will raise it to 50 percent. Hence we should reciprocate and be grateful to Rahul Gandhi and bring back the Congress party in Karnataka," she said.

Interestingly, Maheshwari spoke in Kannada and urged the Women Congress activists to work for the party with renewed energy.

AICC secretary B K Taradevi said politics is a tool to reform the society. "Indira Gandhi was the only Prime Minister who empowered women in society. She studied the problems of women who worked in the fields and did them justice by providing equal wages as men in the agriculture sector," she said.

On this occasion Maheshwari, Manjula Naidu, president of Mahila Congress Karnataka, Tejaswini Gowda and B K Taradevi felicitated veteran Congress activists. 

In his address, former union minister Janardhan Poojary lambasted RSS leader Mohan Bhagwat and the BJP government and questioned why Bhagwat cannot guide Bajrang Dal and HJV activists in the right path. "Presently, there are many backward class youths in Bellary jail who are booked for communal violence in the coastal areas. Why are people of upper castes not held for communal violence? Why are only the backward class people victimized?" he demanded.

"The BJP government has failed the people of state. The state has many problems, and government has failed to rule properly. BJP terms Congress rule as nepotism. But only the Nehru family has sacrificed its life for the nation," he added/
 
Poojary also challenged JD(S) leader Kumarswamy for the latter's comments against the recent Padyatra undertaken by Congress, and said, "Let Kumarswamy come with me on Padayatra against communal harmony."

Tejaswini Gowda, former MP extolled the Congress women activists and said, "The mothers of coastal area are very brave, they have given birth to famous personalities as well as great warriors. Congress feels their unspoken pain, but BJP sees only their outer appearance. Though a woman is constantly under huge pressure in the family, socially and financially, she never gives up. Woman is not a competitor to another woman, she should not quarrel with other women. Man is her competitor upon whom she should tread," she said.

"This time victory for Congress in the state is a must. Hence women workers here should work for the party and uproot BJP from the coastal region as well as from the state and bring Congress back to power," she added.

Manjula Naidu, president of State Mahila Congress, Vinaya Kumar Sorake, B Ramanath Rai, U T Khader, Gulzar Banu, Geetha, AICC secretary, Sarala Kanchan, Veronica Pinto, Shamala Bhandary, secretary of KPCC, Mamatha D S Gatti, president of president of Dakshina Kannada Mahila Congress, Kripa Amar Alva, Hilda Alva, Sharlet Pinto, Ivan D’Souza, Moideen Bava, P V Mohan, T K Sudheer, B Ibrahim and others were present on the occasion. Mamatha Gatti welcomed.

During the programme, when Poojary was addressing the gathering, former deputy mayor Shashikala fell unconscious and chaos prevailed for sometime. She was rushed to hospital by the Congress activists.