Nadir shah looted India only once but Britisher`s looted us for 200 years. The East India Company first came as traders then stayed in India after seeing its rich wealth and prosperity. In order to loot Indian wealth these Britisher`s started living in India. The East India Company also was successful in gaining control because of people being illiterate and not able to fight for their rights. It was only after 1857 when Mangal Pandey revolted against the British, people realized the need to fight against the company Rule for their rights. After this it was Mahatma Gandhi who showed people the path of non-violence to fight against the Britishers. When Gandhiji took the charge of India`s freedom struggle the condition of women was pathetic. Practices like child-marriage, sati, and female infanticide were carried on a large scale. A few numbers of women were educated who could go to school, only in covered carts. Women were not allowed to go out of the house unless accompanied by men. When Mahatma Gandhi saw this injustice done against women he convinced people about the importance of women and practiced it in real sense. After this women were encouraged to attain education. It was after this that women also participated a great deal in India`s freedom struggle.

Role of women in freedom struggle
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit: Vijayalakshmi came from a prominent family. Her father Motilal Nehru was the president of Congress, and brother Jawaharlal Nehru went on to become India`s Prime Minister. She was inspired by the persona of Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi and impressed by Sarojini Naidu. She entered the Non Co-operation Movement to fight against the British rule. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit represented India in many of the conferences abroad. She was present in San Francisco when the U.N first met there. She attended numerous public lectures and challenged the British dominated delegates rights to represent India therein. National and international affairs were part of the air she breathed at home and her own interest in these woke up early. At the age of sixteen she wanted to join Annie Besant`s Home Rule League but being too young, she was only allowed to enroll as a volunteer. She was a great fighter and took parts in many of the freedom movement. She was elected to Uttar Pradesh Assembly in 1936. The political career made her India`s first women cabinet minister in 1937.

Aruna Asaf Ali : Aruna Asaf Ali was born as Aruna Ganguly on July 16 1908 at Kalka (Haryana) in an orthodox Hindu Bengali family. Aruna Asaf Ali was a legendary heroine of India`s freedom struggle. Her first major political action was during the Salt Satyagraha in 1930 when she addressed public meetings and led processions. British Government charged her for being a "vagrant" and sentenced her to one year`s imprisonment. When political prisoners were released in the aftermath of Gandhi-Irwin pact, Aruna was not released. But a public agitation in favour of her release, forced British government to release her. She was again arrested in 1932 and put in Tihar Jail. In Tihar Jail she went on a hunger strike against the treatment done towards political prisoners. Her protest caused an improvement in conditions, but she herself was moved to lonely imprisonment in Ambala.

Aruna Asaf Ali was a dedicated sociologist. She was elected the first Mayor of Delhi. She devoted her entire life for the betterment of the country without any selfish means. Her contribution in liberating Goa had tremendous impact in achieving the freedom for Goans. She was a true patriot. The Bharat Ratna was honoured to Aruna Asaf Ali with a stamp issued by the Indian Postal Service in 1998.

Sarojini Naidu: Sarojini Naidu, the Nightingale of India, was a distinguished poet, renowned freedom fighter and one of the great orators of her time. Since childhood Sarojini Naidu was a scholar in her studies. She passed her metric exams at the age of twelve. She was also a great poet. She was elected as the president of Indian National Congress. A dramatic meeting with another respected leader Gopal Krishna Gokhle changed her life completely. Gopal Krishna saw in her fiery speech an excellent future orator and brilliant leader. The dynamic phase of Sarojinis career was from 1917-1919. She campaigned for the Khilafat Movement. Sarojini even fought against the brutal Montague-Chelmsford Reforms and the draconian Rowlett act. She had also participated with Gandhiji in the Satyagraha movement. When Gandhi launched the Civil Disobedience Movement, she proved a faithful lieutenant. With great courage Sarojini had restricted the rioters, she even addressed thousands of people on the sensitive massacre of Jallianwala Bagh with her powerful oratory. Everyone knew her courage when Mahatma Gandhi chose her for the salt Satyagraha.

Madam Bhikaji Cama: Madam Cama was born on 24th September 1861 to rich Parsi parents. Young Bhikaji received good English education, but from the beginning she was a rebel, and a nationalist. She had good flair to learn languages and became expert in arguing her country`s cause in different circles at a young age. She fought for the freedom of the country till the last in her own way, and helped many revolutionaries with money and materials. Madame Bhikaji always believed that British had looted India, and practiced worst form of imperialism. She had thousand and one reasons to show how India was kept in abject poverty by the British to help them to become the most powerful country in the world of that period. Bhikaji Cama always stood for swaraj or self-rule. She fought for unity of Hindus and Muslims. She continued financing revolutionaries in and out of India. British were not happy with her activities and there was a plan to finish her off. Madam Cama also fought for the cause of women. She published many books on Indian freedom struggle, which had writings against the British rule.

Sister Nivedita: Her real name was Miss Margaret Noble. Sister Nivedita was one of the hosts of foreign women who were attracted towards Swami Vivekananda and Hindu philosophy. Born in Ireland on 28 October 1867, she arrived in India in January 1898, in search of truth. She was impressed by the ideals of Womanhood in India. She once remarked that India was the land of great women. She, however, felt that Indian women needed, to cultivate among themselves a wider and broader concept of the nation, so that they could participate along with men in building a free and strong nation. She propagated for the cause of India throughout America and Europe. Swami Vivekananda described her as a real Lioness. Rabindranath Tagore regarded her as Lok-Mata whose name is very familiar in Bengal. Her writings on Indian history and philosophy, on religious customs, festivals, her lectures on multi faceted subjects, her travel interactions with eminent persons have given a new depth, and added a new dimension, to the socio-cultural history of India.

Kamala Nehru: Kamala Nehru was the wife of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Brought up in a traditional Hindu Brahmin family, she felt alienated amongst the more Westernized Nehru`s. It was only with the involvement of the Nehru`s in the national movement, did she emerge into the forefront. Kamala Nehru gave full support to her husband in his desire to work actively for the freedom struggle. In the Non Cooperation movement of 1921, she organized groups of women in Allahabad and picketed shops selling foreign cloth and liquor. When her husband was arrested to prevent him delivering a "seditious" public speech, she went in his place to read it out. She was twice arrested by British authorities.She played a prominent part in organizing the No Tax Campaign in United Provinces (now Uttar Pradesh). Kamala Nehru took part in the Civil Disobedience Movement. Among other activities, Kamala set up a hospital in the premises of Swaraj Bhavan. She defied the advice of doctors, family and friends to lead processions, picket foreign cloth shops and visited women in their homes to convince them to join the struggle for Independence. Kamala Nehru and her associates wore only khadi clothes and made bonfires of imported goods. As Kamala was the member of Desh Sevika Sangh, she joined others in picketing foreign cloth shops.

She excelled as a speaker, marcher, campaigner and tireless volunteer. Kamala Nehru actively participated in the processions and rallies conducted by the Indian National Congress. She always fought for Hindu-Muslim unity. Described as pretty, slim, and tender, Kamala was quiet, unobtrusive, and is thought to have had little impact on her husband. She gave birth to a daughter, Indira Priyadarshini, who later succeeded her father as prime minister and head of the Congress party. Kamala died from tuberculosis in Switzerland while Jawaharlal Nehru was in prison.