Mahila Congress launches online membership drive announces leadership training programme

New Delhi, Sep 15 (PTI) On the completion of its 40 years, the All India Mahila Congress on Sunday launched a nationwide online membership campaign and announced a special leadership training programme for members.
    Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters, Mahila Congress chief Alka Lamba said, "Today, on the foundation day of the Mahila Congress, we are going to launch the website of the Mahila Congress. The All India Mahila Congress is going to start a nationwide online membership campaign for the first time. So now, sisters from all over the country who used to ask 'how to join Mahila Congress', it has become easier for them now."
    "Along with launching our website, today we are also going to start a nationwide membership campaign of the Mahila Congress for the first time. With one click, all the sisters of the country will become members of the All India Mahila Congress," she said.
    She also appealed to women of the country to join the Mahila Congress and strengthen the organisation.
    "We assure you that if you are facing any kind of injustice or atrocities, if you need any kind of help, the All India Mahila Congress is standing with you with full strength," Lamba said.
    She also announced the start of a special leadership training programme for women members.
    "All the women who will become members of the Mahila Congress will be given a three-day leadership training programme, which we are going to start soon," she said.
    Since the enactment of the law for 33 per cent reservation for women, "our continuous effort and struggle has been that the reservation law has been made but it is not being implemented", she said.
    "We are constantly putting pressure on the central government and this pressure will remain that the women's reservation law, which has been made, should be implemented. Naturally, if it is implemented, then half of our population of the country will get the opportunity to contest elections, to become MLAs, MPs and to write in the House... to also participate in decisions," she said.
    "That is why we announce the Women Leadership Training Programme. We will start from the state, every state president, state executive will have to undergo this leadership training programme. Every district president, block president will have to undergo this training programme and, along with this, we will also fully empower and enable our sisters who are connected to the ground through this training programme so that they can know how to build an organisation, contest elections, and win," Lamba said.
    In his message to the Mahila Congress on its foundation day, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said he was happy to know that the organisation was launching a nationwide membership campaign for the first time, along with a new website.
    "Members are the life of any organisation. Especially when new members join the organisation, they work hard to prove themselves and that expands the organisation. I am confident that in the membership campaign, we will also get an opportunity to propagate the power of our ideas across the country," he said.
    "Women have been a very strong force of the Congress organisation. Sardar Patel was given the title of 'Sardar' in Bardoli by women power. Many women leaders like Kamla Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Aruna Asaf Ali, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur shook the British rule," Kharge said.
    Bharat Ratna Indira Gandhi, who founded the Mahila Congress, is cited as an example for the impact she left with her work as the country's first woman prime minister, he said.
    "Sonia Gandhi's hard work and contribution in the Congress organisation is cited as an example," he said.
    "Women power has always been in the mainstream in the Congress party. After independence, Sarojini Naidu became the first woman governor in the country in 1947. Mrs Sucheta Kripalani became the first woman chief minister in the country in 1963. Indira ji became the first woman prime minister in 1966. Pratibha Patil became the first woman president in 2007. Meira Kumar became the first woman speaker of the Lok Sabha in 2009. All this is the contribution of the Congress," he said.
    The power that nearly 14 lakh elected women got in the Panchayati Raj system was also due to the vision of the Congress, Kharge said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)