To mark the centenary year of International Women’s Day, the Party decided to make all-out special efforts to induct new members from among women as well as to take effective steps in the direction of building women cadres. To this end, it was decided to conduct a women’s ‘political literacy’ campaign in the month of June on three subjects: ‘Our Revolution, Our Party’; ‘Women’s Movement – Basic concepts and Our Tasks’; and ‘Panchayats and Women’s Assertion.’

The Bihar State Committee took a target of reaching at least 15000 women through 500 classes. To begin with, seven teachers’ training camps were organized at the zonal level. District level camps were also organized in Patna, Gaya and Siwan. North Bihar’s training camp was organised under the leadership of Comrade Ramjatan Sharma, In-charge of Party’s Educational Department, where women state committee members of the Bihar State committee were also present. The zonal camp at Shahabad held on 8 June was conducted by Comrades Saroj Chaubey and Amar; the Magadh zonal camp was conducted by comrades Rita and Rajaram; while Comrade Shashi conducted the camp in the Nalanda-Nawada zone and Comrade Pradip Jha in the Purnea-Bhagalpur zone. These camps were organized on 8 June. The camp in the Patna Rural-Jahanabad zone was held on 11 June, which was conducted by Comrades Anita and Kunal, and the Siwan-Gopalganj zone’s camp was conducted by Comrade Meena Tiwari on 12 June. The camps were organized with a view to open up women participants’ initiative and confidence in political understanding and articulation; and women were encouraged to ask as many questions as possible.

Then local level classes were organized between 15 June and 30 June. The participants were women party members, prospective members and supporters in our mass base. Every class was given the task of electing one delegate from among them for the forthcoming convention to be held in Patna on 28 July.

So far, 656 classes have been held in 18 districts where 18,535 women participated. In Bhojpur district a total of 3468 women attended classes at 147 places, 4938 women participated in 115 classes in Siwan, 2051 women came to 60 classes held in Patna Rural district, 1000 women participated in 45 classes in Rohtas, 1448 women in 57 classes in Arwal, and 1000 women in 15 classes in Aurangabad district.

There was greater enthusiasm witnessed when classes were held in the women’s own villages, while the number decreased when the class had to be organized centrally at the Panchayat level. Many women who were not called for the class spontaneously came to attend on their own. Many women said that it was their first experience of attending classes organized specially for women. For many of the participants, it was their first encounter with Marxist concepts and analysis, especially on the question of women’s liberation. Some of them found the idea of a world completely free of patriarchal domination and oppression a near impossibility to contemplate. It was only when it was pointed out how, in their own experience, the party had won at least partial but significant victories through struggles for dignity, freedom, land, wages, etc that they agreed that even a world where women enjoyed full freedom was indeed possible through revolutionary struggles and social transformation.

In some of the classes, even women participants themselves explained some of the questions and concepts (such as that of ‘revolution’), with examples drawn from their own experiences, to other participants. One woman in Jahanabad came to attend the class after leaving her shop closed; her husband came into the class and started scolding her. She as well as other women immediately told him that he was able to order her about in such a fashion only because society was patriarchal, and firmly told him that he would have to attend to the shop at least for today. Generally there was tremendous enthusiasm among women and there were demands that classes be organized more often.

The impact of the classes in unleashing initiatives of women was quite apparent. 165 women who had participated in a 3-hour class in Aurangabad with all sincerity, took a very active part in 7 July rural strike. Similarly, in Darauli block of Siwan, when a woman was killed and her body could not be recovered owing to police connivance in Siwan, around a 1000 women gheraoed the thana on 17 July till the thana in-charge accepted their demands. The classes held so successfully in Siwan were undoubtedly a factor in facilitating this kind of militant mobilization of women.

Also, women activists developed greater confidence and became more active in the course of organizing and conducting these classes, and their own ideological clarity developed in a significant degree.

Although the aspect of choosing a nucleus from every group through the class could not take shape in many places, the State Women’s Department decided to hold meeting to identify women cadres and encourage them to attend the 28 July convention, and to continue this process of cadreisation in future as well. The Women’s Department also decided that another state level convention will be held on 12 August with a view to making another effort to organize and consolidate the women party members from above.

This political literacy campaign has left a positive impact and there is a need to ensure its continuity in future.

Saroj Chaubey