On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee participated in a procession in the city organised by the women’s wing of the party here on Saturday.
This becomes significant as it comes ahead of the Lok Sabha election when the poll process has been kicked off. It also gains significance in the wake of rising rate of crime against women in the State for which the Trinamool government has faced flak from the Opposition parties, who have said that women were no longer safe. They have also attacked the government for the tardy progress of the cases filed in this respect. Ms Banerjee’s participation at the event is being seen as her first election rally in the city.
The Trinamool chief did not speak at the rally but she posted on her social networking site. Describing girls as “assets”, she said: “ today (Saturday) is International Women’s Day. I congratulate all my mothers, sisters and girl children who are future of our country.”
As for the purpose of the procession, she said that it was being taken out to observe the International Women’s Day and conveyed her best wishes to all her “sisters and brothers all over the world.” She also posted pictures of the event.
In may be mentioned that on Friday, the State secretary of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), the women’s wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Minati Ghosh, had alleged that its application, along with three other women’s organisations of the the Left parties, seeking permission to take out a procession in the same area, was turned down by the police, although it had applied much in advance.
Ms Ghosh also said that that even though they were earlier told by the police that a State government programme to observe Women’s Day was going to be attended by Ms Banerjee, later they came to know that the programme was being organised by the women’s wing of the Trinamool Congress.