Discuss the role of women in the freedom struggle especially during the Gandhian phase. (UPSC 2016)

Women were not passive followers in the freedom struggle; they became active political actors, especially during the Gandhian phase. Gandhi’s emphasis on ahimsa, sacrifice and moral courage brought large numbers of women, including rural and working-class women, into public life.

• Mass mobilisation: In Non-Cooperation and Civil Disobedience, they boycotted foreign cloth, spun khadi, raised funds and picketed liquor shops.
• Leadership: Leaders such as Basanti Devi, Sarojini Naidu and Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay gave visible leadership to protest marches and salt satyagraha.
• Underground resistance: During Quit India, women like Aruna Asaf Ali, Usha Mehta and Sucheta Kripalani led secret networks, radio broadcasts and mobilisation.
• Social reform: They linked freedom with the fight against purdah, child marriage, untouchability and addiction.

Their role expanded nationalism from elite politics to a mass movement. It also challenged gender norms and laid the base for women’s future political equality.