Friends from Media are invited to cover "Press Conference on Gender Discrimination and Oppression in Secunderabad Club, city’s oldest 137 year old Club".

Venue: Lamakaan, in lane adjacent VengalaRao Park, Road no.5, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad. Date and Time: Wednesday, 29th July, 2014 at 2 pm

Contact person: Anjana Anukriti Taggarse Contact number: +91 98485 12997

The Brief: The Secunderabad Club, as per their Rules, is a Social, Sports and Cultural Club where men and women are both entitled to be members. It is not a ‘gentlemen’s club’ where only men are members. However gender discrimination and gender oppression is practiced under the aegis of the Rules themselves by the Secunderabad Club.

The Rules of the Club impose disabilities on women of two kinds, (i) right of self governance through franchise/Voting and (ii) marriage/remarriage disentitles women to continued membership of Club. However, the men in the Club enjoy the rights of franchise and freedom to marry/remarry without any restrictions

Women (Associate Member Ladies (AML) members) are entitled to membership in the same way as their brothers are, both enter membership as progeny of Permanent Members of the Club and pay the same admission fee.

AML (women) members are prevented from exercising their rights of franchise/ suffrage. Under Rule 17 of the Club, only men have these rights of franchise. AML (Women) members are not permitted to (i) exercise their vote, choose their representatives and be part of the governance process (ii) contest for elections and participate in self governance (iii) nominate names for managing committee or other memberships (iv) make proposals to the General Body to amend the Rules or bring about changes in the Club (v) their children are disentitled from membership solely because the parent/member is a woman. Children of male members have a right of membership. (vi) not permitted to be members of the General Body of the Society. Only men can be permanent members and move resolutions and take decisions on issues governing all the members, including women and children. (vii) Their spouses and children lose membership on the death of an AML member only because she is a woman while the family of a Permanent Member continues the membership even on the death of the permanent member.

Women of all categories (AML / Lady / Associate or Spousal) are sought to be prevented from marrying or remarrying. (i) Rules restrain Widows /spousal members from remarrying (Rule VII(3)) (ii) Rules restrain Lady members (single / divorced / separated from remarrying (Rule VII)

(Then the history of this fight, etc. and the final call for action below)

Thanks so much! Anjana