Question

Imagine you are a woman participating in the Civil Disobedience Movement.
Explain what the experience meant to your life.

Answer 1

Hint: A substantial number of women participated in the Gandhiji-appointed Civil Disobedience Campaign. They engaged in marches of protest, created salt, and picked up imported clothing and liquor stores. The police have put many of them in prison. National service was seen by women at that time as a moral imperative.

Complete answer:
It was a time when women were being kept within the walls. The position of a woman was considered to be that of a homemaker. I was not permitted to take part in social or political events, even though I had a good education. But I felt I might be a part of the process of nation-making by engaging in the Civil Disobedience Movement. So, on Gandhiji's call, I could not stop myself.

And I became an active member of the revolution, revolting against my family values. For me, it was a proud moment to engage in the Civil Disobedience Movement of Gandhi. When I tended to those wounded in the lathi-charge, it was a motivational experience for me. It was like taking care of a brother of my own. I've been full of nationalist fervour. This has been the most unforgettable and proud time of my life.

Note: It is less expressed that not a single woman was part of the hand-picked entourage of 71 who accompanied Gandhi from 12 March to 6 April 1930 on the 240-mile march over 24 days from the Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi. For many of the female leaders of the movement, this exclusion of women became a point of contention, and Sarojini Naidu finally had her way by joining Gandhi on the last stretch to Dandi, where on 6 April he lifted a fistful of salt.