Istri Akali Dal vows not to give or take dowry

The women wing of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Istri Akali Dal, on Monday avowed not to take or give dowry, besides resolving to widen the fight against the social menace by encouraging women to take similar vows at its State level conference on March 8.

“Istri Akali Dal officer bearers have taken a solemn pledge not to take dowry or give any during a State level meeting and resolved to widen the fight against this social menace by encouraging women to take similar vows at its State level conference on March eight,” said its president Bibi Jagir Kaur after a meeting of the wing following a seminar on women empowerment. She said that Istri wing officer bearers believed that there was an urgent need to fight the menace of dowry and they themselves should lead by example.

“I am beholden to my colleagues who have decided not to give or take any dowry. Now these office bearers will lead this movement in the State and encourage women to end this malaise,” she said. Bibi Jagir Kaur said that the women wing was holding a State level conference at Damdama Sahib on International Women’s Day where it would also spread awareness about domestic violence and the need to tackle it at the community level. The issue was discussed at length in the meeting following a suggestion by noted women activist Dr Pam Rajput who said that the wing should identify cases of domestic violence and try to resolve them through counselling. 

 On a suggestion by Dr Rajput, the Istri Akali Dal president also accepted a proposal to conduct village level society mapping which involves fanning out in the villages and  finding out the problems of women.