ABSTRACT
The city of Calcutta was the epicentre of a radical women's movement in the early 1940s, which soon spread across Bengal. It arose directly out of the war situation. The Second World War took a new turn when Japan entered into an alliance with the Axis Powers in December 1941. Communist women had to face the charge of being anti-national when they opposed the Quit India movement as part of the CPI strategy of supporting the British war effort at a time when the Soviet Union was under attack. They also opposed the Forward Bloc which believed that Subhas Chandra Bose would soon 'liberate India' with the help of the Japanese Army. Mahila Atma Raksha Samiti workers supervised queues in front of Calcutta markets. The wide network of Mahila Samitis in different districts was put on a firm organisational footing and all local samitis were integrated with the Bengal Provincial MARS.
