International Women’s Day: Priyanka leads march in Lucknow

PTI, Mar 8, 2022, 4:06 PM IST

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday led a march here on International Women’s Day, a day after the voting for the final phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections.

The march was taken out from ‘1090 Crossing’, a traffic intersection named after the office of Women Helpline number located there, to the Veerangana Uda Devi crossing in Sikanderbagh locality.

Ahead of the assembly elections, Priyanka Gandhi had come out with the poll slogan “ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon (I’m a girl and can fight)” with the party giving 40 per cent of its tickets in UP to women candidates in the assembly polls.

The Tuesday march too was named after this slogan.

Carrying pink balloons and flags with ”ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon” written on them, thousands of people, including women from across the state, participated in the march.

Passing through Mantri Niwas, a high-rise apartment block for families of ministers and MLAs and the Dalibagh area, the march covered about three km and culminated at Veerangana Uda Devi Crossing with Priyanka Gandhi and other Congress leaders garlanding the statue.

In over the hour-long march, girls showed a lot of enthusiasm in the event and marched along with Priyanka Gandhi while also taking selfies with her.

Besides the 159 women candidates fielded by the party in the assembly polls, women MLAs and MPs besides several other prominent women noted for their achievements in various walks of life were invited for the march.

All India Mahila Congress president Netta D’Souza said ‘ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon’ was not a mere slogan but an attempt to ensure women’s empowerment. During the electioneering and even prior to that, Priyanka Gandhi had been raising issues related to women and seeking their resolutions. She had also visited the families of rape victims in Unna and Hathras.

She had recently told PTI that she would not leave Uttar Pradesh and its people regardless of the election result and continue to fight along with them for the resolution of issues concerning the common man.