Mrs Masani joins New Congress

Summary

This short Hindustan Times news report, datelined New Delhi, March 3, 1971, records Mrs Shakuntala Masani’s formal decision to join the New Congress by signing its pledge and paying the membership fee. She was the wife of Swatantra leader Minoo Masani, who opposed the party she joined. The report places her move in the context of the campaign involving Subhadra Joshi and a Jan Sangh member of the dissolved Lok Sabha, and notes that she intended to campaign for her husband in Rajkot, Gujarat, although she did not travel there because of Delhi’s flight schedule.

The article foregrounds the political independence she claimed within her marriage. Mrs Masani said she respected her husband’s political integrity but rejected the assumption that spouses must share the same political views; it also notes that their son, Zareel, had joined Congress (N) earlier.

Key points

• Mrs Shakuntala Masani formally joined the New Congress on March 3, 1971.
• She signed the party pledge and paid the membership fee.
• She was the wife of Swatantra leader Minoo Masani, who opposed the New Congress.
• The report connects her political activity with a campaign involving Subhadra Joshi and a Jan Sangh member of the dissolved Lok Sabha.
• She said she would later campaign for Minoo Masani in Rajkot, Gujarat, but did not travel there because of flight arrangements.
• She defended the right of a wife to hold political views different from her husband’s.
• The article notes that the Masanis’ son, Zareel, had previously joined Congress (N).