Rameshwari Nehru

Born 1886; died Nov. 8, 1966, in Delhi. Prominent public figure in India and follower of M. K. Gandhi.

During the mid-1920’s, Nehru became an organizer of the women’s movement, and the Delhi Women’s League, one of the first women’s organizations in the country, was established in 1926 on her initiative. After India’s independence in 1947, she actively supported equal rights for women and opposed caste inequality. In 1954 she became vice-president of the Indo-Soviet Cultural Society and in 1955 was elected first chairman of the All India Peace and Solidarity Organization. She received the International Lenin Prize for Strengthening Peace Between Nations in 1961.