VARIOUS women’s organisations held a militant protest demonstration outside the Vasant Kunj (North) police station on March 20, against the inordinate delay by the police in arresting Prof Atul Johri who has been accused of sexual harassment by nine women students. Professor Atul Johri is a senior professor at the School of Life Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University. The harassment of girl students in JNU is highly condemnable and shameful. Nine students from his laboratory have registered a police complaint against Prof Johri.

A DELEGATION of AIDWA leaders met the law minister on February 8 and submitted a memorandum regarding the Bill of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2017, bringing to his attention the concerns of various women’s organisations and individuals about it.The law minister gave a patient hearing to the views expressed by the delegation and also explained the government’s stand point.

IT has been reported in the media that the union cabinet has approved a bill making it a criminal offence to pronounce triple talaq apart from some other provisions. The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), in a statement issued on December 19 has condemned the hasty and extremely undemocratic manner in which the bill is being sought to be passed in the parliament without any public discussion and discussion with women’s organisations and groups working with issues related to Muslim women.AIDWA is against the criminalisation of pronouncement of triple talaq.

THE All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), in a statement issued on November 22, has strongly condemned the threats and acts of violence unleashed by right wing vigilante groups like the Rajput Karni Sena which has prevented the release of the film ‘Padmavati’ on the scheduled date. The parallel system of ‘goonda raj’ being perpetrated by such extra constitutional groups has been exacerbated by the felicity with which several constitutionally elected state governments have succumbed to these pressures.

THE AIDWA central executive committee (CEC) meeting held on October 13-15, 2017 in Amritsar, Punjab, decided to organise nationwide campaigns and struggles on challenges arising from the economic attacks of the BJP government and the communal propaganda of the Sangh Parivar. President Malini Bhattacharya, along with vice-presidents Sudha Sundararaman, T N Seema, Rampari and Rama Devi chaired the various sessions of the CEC.A lively cultural programme of Gidda and Bhangda, folk dances of Punjab was organised by the reception committee.