MALAPPURAM : Defying opposition from certain orthodox sections, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has decided to encourage more young women to enter the public arena and actively engage in politics. As part of the plan, the party will host gatherings of women who have completed graduation, at the panchayat and municipal levels, ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Ummar Arakkal, vice-president of the IUML Malappuram district committee, said graduated women who are not active in politics will be invited to the gatherings.
“Those with leadership qualities will be selected as speakers for party functions, including public and family meetings,” he said.
“Ward committees and the Vanitha League will identify women graduates and extend invitations to them. Some women, despite obtaining higher education, are confined to their homes. The objective of this programme is to inspire and encourage them to actively contribute to society,” he said.
Vanitha League national general secretary Noorbina Rashid said the process of integrating women into the party activities is an ongoing process. “The Vanitha League had sown the seeds much ago and we are now reaping the benefits. We had organised a camp called ‘Chuvadu’ in Kozhikode district a year ago,” she said.
To the fore
IUML to hold gatherings of women, who have completed graduation, at the panchayat and municipal levels
Those with leadership qualities to be selected as speakers for party functions
IUML plans to hold 10,000 family meets
“I can say with confidence that women are the backbone of the IUML, and for that matter, of all political parties. We constitute more than half of the electorate. Political messages reach inside the corridors of the houses through the family meetings, in which women workers play an important role. Vanitha League is the most active women’s organisationat the grassroots level though the activities may not be visible outside,” Noorbina said. Representation of women in IUML’s programmes and committees has been an issue that has become a point of discussion at regular intervals. Though the party has vowed to increase the representation of women in the committees, the plan has not been implemented fully. Certain orthodox sections opposed women’s entry in public sphere, preventing the party from taking a decisive step in this regard. IUML is planning to hold 10,000 family meetings and 212 protest marches across the district. Special committees have been established in all Lok Sabha and assembly constituencies to oversee the election campaigns. A minimum of five family meetings will be organised in each ward, totalling 10,000 meetings before the ensuing Lok Sabha election.