The National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) intends to honour belated leader Sarla Sharma’s memory on May 20, 2022 with a memorial service in New Delhi. The veteran union leader was also a freedom fighter who struggled for an independent India.
Sharma passed away on April 12, at around 100 years of age. According to NFIW General Secretary Annie Raja in a joint statement, Sharma joined the Gandhian struggle for independence in the 1930s.
After reading Communist literature she joined the Communist Party of India (CPI) and remained involved in party activities till her death. She was a founder member of the NFIW, the CPI Delhi State and the President of the Board of Trustees of the Dr A V Baliga Memorial Trust.
“[She] continued to be a guiding spirit of the women’s movement,” said NFIW Member Secretary Ranjana Ray.
Over the years, she also formed the female students’ group, Delhi Mahila Sangha, IPTA in Delhi during the late 1930s and ‘40s. She also worked as an elected member of the Delhi Municipal Corporation.
Her memorial is scheduled on Friday at 2.30 PM at the Raja Rammohun Roy Memorial Hall in New Delhi. Her funeral was carried out at Lodhi Road on the day of her demise. CPI General Secretary D. Raja, Secretary CPI Delhi State Council and National Council Member Prof. Dinesh Varshney, CPI National Council member and Sharma’s nephew Dhirendra Sharma and many other attended the event.
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