POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF MUSLIM WOMEN

IN INDIA*

Dr (Mrs.) Vasundhara Mohan

Director (Programmes), Institute of Indian Culture, Mumbai
________

The October 2000 UN General Assembly resolution fully supported the 1995
Beijing Declaration and called upon the Member States and other actors to
implement the Platform for Action (PFA) by promoting a ‘policy of
mainstreaming a gender perspective at all levels’ and ‘to ensure that the gender
dimension influences areas such as poverty, housing, the environment and
sustainable development.’ Governments were asked to develop comprehensive
implementation strategies or plans of action for the advancement of women. The
Beijing Declaration and the UN resolution were, thus, meant to empower women,
and to promote social change in the direction of gender equality.

With these developments giving a boost to women’s struggle for enhanced

political participation in their countries, women even in the repressed Arab
societies started clamouring for change. But, the feminist agenda is stuck in the
political throats of male-dominated polity in several countries. While women's
participation in diverse fields has been increasing in most democratic nations,
the insignificant political participation of Muslim women, including in a secular
society like India, is a matter of concern. (1)

While Indian women have been fighting for 33 per cent reservation in the
Parliament and legislative assemblies for more than a decade, the aim of this
paper is to examine the status of Muslim women’s political participation in India.
After Indonesia, India has the second largest Muslim population in the World. At
13.4 per cent of the over one billion population, Muslims are the largest minority
in India. Not only by virtue of their numbers, but with community and gender
specific problems of their own, and also on account of the general lack of interest
on the part of ‘secular’ women’s groups in Muslim women’s issues, Muslim
women need to have their own representatives in the Parliament. This is more so
because the few male Muslim members of the Parliament do not think that
Muslim women have any problems. Do Indian Muslim women have political
aspirations? Do they fight elections; as nominees of political parties or as
independents? While the political participation of Indian women per se has been
extensively studied, Muslim women have not received much attention.

Ishtiaque Ahamed’s assessment of the status of women in Muslim countries is

relevant to India also. (2)
 ‘Muslim men have curtailed most of the rights of their women. According
to the orthodox Ulema, the primary duty of a conservative Muslim woman
is to look after her husband and children. She is not allowed to venture
outside her home except with the permission of her husband or father.
This provision is strictly enforced in Saudi Arabia and now in
Afghanistan”.

Women’s political participation in the Islamic World

Reports show that major changes are taking place in some parts of the Islamic
world, with Muslim women demanding to be treated with respect due to them as
human beings, and for equal rights; pursuing their rights within the Islamic
discourse, and exercising their Quranic rights. Islam, as eminent scholars assure,
is a progressive religion for women and was radically egalitarian for its times and
remains to be so. When Quran, Sunnah (teachings of the Prophet), and Islamic
history provide ample evidence of women undertaking various forms of political
involvement, from bai’ah (process of getting elected as leader) to fighting battles
to influencing political decisions, ignoring them today deprives Islamic heritage
of its valuable role models, while continuing the stagnation of Islamic thought. To
exclude women from political involvement simply because they are women is an
act of total bias based on gender.

The question of empowering women in Islamic societies has been receiving wide
scholastic attention since 1995. For, ‘in many predominantly Muslim countries,
especially in North Africa and the Middle East, human rights conditions for
women have deteriorated since the early 1970s. Economic conditions have
worsened, democratic institutions are being challenged, and religious radicalism
with its andocentric political agendas has increased. Some of the governments
that in 1975 had accepted the major international documents on human rights in
principle, now reject many of these rights on the grounds of a supposed conflict
with specific local cultural practices.’ (3)

Way back in 1994, Islamic and Christian fundamentalists and some Asian
governments opposed women's universal human rights at the Cairo Conference
on Population and Development, questioning the validity of women's rights on
doctrinal or cultural grounds. They challenged the concept of universal human
rights as a Western ploy; as cultural imperialism and intellectual colonialism.
Muslim fundamentalists declared Islam as the only valid parameter of rights for
Muslims. (4)

Against such attitudes, Muslim women have suffered historical seclusion from
political scene. As political participation has consistently been considered as a
male preserve, women’s movements and activities have made political
participation as one of their major demands. Effectively pressing such demand

2
however depends on the level of education of the women. But, ‘in many Muslim
countries, gender-based discrimination, coupled with social and cultural barriers,
limits access and participation of women in higher education. That such barriers
are falsely attributed to the teachings of Islam is evident from the fact that the
Holy Prophet emphasized that ‘acquiring of knowledge as bounden duties of each
Muslim from the cradle to the grave’ and ‘the quest for knowledge and science is
obligatory upon every Muslim man and woman.’ Quran exhorts the believers to
study nature, to reflect, and to make the best use of reason in their search for the
ultimate truth’. (5)

By the end of 2005, women’s representation in the Arab Parliaments varied from
a low of 0.33 per cent in Yemen to 22.75 per cent in Tunisia. It was only in May
2005 that Kuwait Parliament permitted women to vote and appointed a woman
as a Cabinet Minister. Bahrain’s Parliament elected its first woman Member in
2006. (6) In 2006, women in the Gulf Cooperation Council States achieved a
significant breakthrough in terms of participating in parliamentary elections.

Muslim women’s entry into politics in Islamic and secular societies is largely
determined by the will of the male political and religious leadership and cultural
attitudes towards women's involvement in public life. Often the negative cultural
attitudes of the society and the media prejudice towards women in politics act as
main reasons as to why very few women get elected. This is more so with multi-
cultural South and South East Asia. Other reasons like ideological differences
with conservatives, malicious gossip, attacks on the banners and publications of
female candidates, lack of training and corruption act as barriers to women’s
election to the Parliament.

In South and South East Asia, including predominantly Muslim countries like
Indonesia, Bangladesh and Pakistan, Muslim women have been trying to
enter the legislatures by contesting elections. Unless their representation in
the Parliament is guaranteed by a quota system, Muslim women even in
Indonesia, which has over 88% Muslim population, have been finding it
difficult to get elected, unless backed by political bosses. Khofifah Indar
Parawansa writes: “In a country that follows a patriarchal value system, like
Indonesia, the chances for women to become politicians are limited because
society’s perceptions regarding the division of roles between men and
women tends to be biased towards thinking that a woman’s role should be
limited to managing the household”. (7)

That the women needed the patronage of the political leaders was proved right
when, under the Suhatro era, a specific elite was favoured. “As a result, the
majority of women holding important posts did so by virtue of their familial
relationships or close ties with officials and power-holders at the central level. …
The lack of women’s representation in the political arena is caused, among other

3
things, by the patriarchal culture that does not allow for equal access in the form
of affirmative action for women, such as in the provision of quotas. The state
guidelines, and other political and legal instruments, do not explicitly
discriminate against women, but also do not provide easy defence or access
points for women in many areas, including politics.”(8)

Parawansa lists the following as the obstacles preventing women from becoming
members of parliament: (9)

 Perception that political arena is for men;

 When selection of candidates is done by a group of men, women do not
receive much support;
 Absence of support from the Media;
 Absence of a network of organisations, NGOs and political parties that
fight for the representation of women;
 Difficulty in recruiting women with political capabilities;
 Opposition from spouses in the case of married women;
 Large number of political parties tends to affect women’s selection as
candidates.

Although organisations have been training Indonesian women in exercising their

political rights and in effective participation in politics, it was only after a 2004
law mandated political parties to nominate 30% women candidates, that women
could form 35.25% of the 11,301 candidates at the April parliamentary elections.
But, the law does not provide for sanctions against parties that do not observe the
quota for women candidates.

Even if they are allowed to contest elections and the Constitution guarantees
equal rights, women in Islamic countries are not sure whether they will be
allowed to enjoy their rights in full measure. The fact that the Taliban are
defeated and a democratic government headed by Hamid Karzai is in place in
Afghanistan has made little difference. A February 2008 report of the British
group Womankind Worldwide reveals that the Karzai government and its
international supporters have failed to establish a legal system that actually
functions and enforces women’s constitutional rights. Thus, while the Afghan
Constitution prohibits girls under the age of 16 from getting married, 57% of
all marriages involve girls under the age of 16. Women also face large-scale
domestic violence, intimidation from attending schools or taking up jobs
outside their homes. (10) In December 2009, Karzai assured a delegation of
women from the parliament and civil society that he has been striving to get
more women to participate in the government and other state institutions.
He pointed out that his latest effort was the creation of a new ministry to

4
 fight illiteracy headed by a women Minister, to strive for wiping out illiteracy
that has mostly affected women. (11)

Although women hold more than 25% of the seats in the Afghan Parliament, and
millions of girls have been able to attend primary schools, such educational
gains plummet when girls hit secondary school, with just 4 per cent of female
students reaching 10th grade. (12) But, Karzai government’s March 2009 law
which stipulates that women cannot refuse to have sex with their husbands,
and can only seek work, education or visit the doctor with their husbands'
permission has been bitterly criticised.

Thus, while the implementation of the PFA requires more than just UN
resolutions, it appears as though the PFA is not meant for Muslim women even in
secular societies or to Islamic countries where the leadership stubbornly denies
extending equal rights to women. For, women’s demand for active political
participation in Muslim countries has been considered by the antagonists as one
of the manifestations of modernity and a novel phenomenon.

If women were to win their rights in patriarchal societies, it requires a large

number of well-informed women who can debate, mobilize, and lobby at the
regional and national levels, committed to the goals of the PFA and ready to take
great personal risks to realize them. Instead of remaining outside the political
arena and making noise, they need to enter the system and fight from within.

The Indian scene

Acquiring voting rights along with men, and the right to contest elections, Indian
women have been contesting elections since the first elections in independent
India in 1952. But, even at the end of 2008 they constituted less than 10 per cent
in the Parliament and State legislatures.

In spite of the great strides made in various fields, Indian women are yet to be
fully empowered. Among the Indian women, Muslim women are the worst
sufferers. Bound by Islamic Culture, they are victims of traditions and
interpretation of Islamic laws by the religious ‘leaders’. Indian Muslim Women
also suffer from low literacy levels. At 19 per cent, their literacy rate is less than
half of that of women of other communities and the national literacy rate of 39
per cent for women in general. The community has to pay greater attention to
secular education; particularly of their women. The attitudes in Muslim countries
towards women’s higher education may vary greatly and women may not be able
to exercise their right to University education, due to social, economic, and family
reasons. But, Indian Muslims are living in a secular democracy.

5
The Ulema, who frown upon Muslim women receiving secular education, cannot
digest the idea of women contesting elections. It may be recalled that in the early
1950s, when Egyptian feminists demanded political rights, some religious
authorities vehemently asserted that Islam did not recognize women’s political
rights. A fatwa issued by Al-Azhar maintained that Islam granted women rights
relative to private guardianship, like the right to parenting and the right to
oversee financial and Wakf affairs. Al-Azhar’s opinion about political rights was
categorical; that politics was an exclusively male realm. (13) In November 1995,
when Muslim women proposed to contest the elections to the civic bodies from
the area in the vicinity of Darul-Uloom, Deoband in India, the Ulema became
alarmed. A fatwa was issued stating that if Muslim women wanted to participate
in elections, they should do so wearing the veil. Under such restrictions women
are bound to rebel. For instance, in the Muslim-majority Malappuram district of
Kerala state in India, ‘one-fourth of the 100 village Panchayats (administrative
unit) are headed by Muslim women; remarkable for a community which, not long
ago, frowned upon women going to the market to fetch their weekly rations and
where, unlike many other parts of the state, women are victims of dowry abuse,
low literacy, teenage marriage and adolescent childbirth. Women elected to
village councils used to be accompanied by their husbands until they gained self-
confidence and got rid of their male escorts. (14)

Muslim women in India’s Independence Movement

Before we consider the present involvement of Muslim women in politics, it is

relevant to consider their contribution to Indian independence movement. Like
women from the upper and middle-class Hindu families who joined India’s
freedom struggle inspired by Mahatma Gandhi, Muslim women too joined the
struggle, though they were few in number. This is attributed to the fact that
Mahatma Gandhi invoked India’s sacred Hindu legends to appeal to women.
Such Hindu icons resonated with Hindu women, even to the most poor, low
caste, and uneducated. But Muslim women were uncomfortable with such
invocations. (15) Yet, Muslim women who took part in the freedom struggle
played no less a role. Darakhshan Anjum writes (16):

“When Shah Abdul Aziz Dehlvi proclaimed jihad against the British and in
response to this call Ulema and other people from all over the country
joined him and obstructed the smooth sailing of the British, ladies were
also not far behind. The teaching of Jihad took a concrete shape in 1857
and continued till India achieved freedom in 1947. Not only Muslim men
but Muslim women also stood up against the British. The list of Muslim
women who participated in the freedom struggle is impressive and not
restricted to one type of activity. They encouraged their husbands, fathers
and sons at home and themselves took all the household responsibilities
on their shoulders in the absence of their men folk. They came out of their
four walls and travelled from place to place to encourage people to strive

6
 for independence. They joined non-violent as well as violent movement
against the foreign rule. These women were not only from educated and
enlightened families but also from illiterate and rural areas.”

Even in what now constitutes Pakistan, hundreds of Muslim women participated

in the civil disobedience movement against the British and courted arrest.
Muslim women like Fatima Jinnah, exhorted Muslim women to stand shoulder to
shoulder with men during the freedom struggle. (17)

Prior to independence, both Hindus and Muslims had a common enemy, the
British, prompting Muslim women join the freedom struggle despite their poor
educational status, and religious restrictions. Realizing the need for secular
education, the first English school for girls was started by Sheikh Muhammad
Abdullah in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh in 1906, despite opposition. This was followed
by a number of other schools, with support from some upper class Muslim
women. Muslim social and educational reform movements sought co-operation
and drew inspiration from Hindu women leaders. Such revolutionary mood
continued in the 1930s and a number of Muslim women who had the privilege of
education and exposure to the outside world produced revolutionary literature.
This period was also marked by the convergence of women's issues cutting across
the boundaries of religion, focussing more on similarities than on differences.
(18)

However, following independence, when Muslims in India became a minority,

and began to be referred as such, the community withdrew into a shell to protect
its religious identity, shunned secular education and Muslim women were
confined to the home. Consequently, there were no Muslim women or not more
than a couple of members in the first six Parliaments of independent India and
they belonged to the political elite or were nominated. ‘By the emergence of the
feminist movement in the 1970s, minority identities had begun to harden, and
Muslim women were affected by this divisive environment. Religious
fundamentalists tried to place the onus of preserving religio-cultural identity on
women. This identity syndrome, with women in the centre, diverted attention
away from Muslim women's grim realities and the deviations from the actual
Islamic position’. (19)

Muslim women in Indian parliament

No Muslim women contested the elections to first Lok Sabha (1952-57), the lower
house. There were none in the Rajya Sabha (upper house) too, although there
were 22 Muslim members in both houses. In the second Lok Sabha (1957-62)
there were two Muslim women. Only one Muslim woman was elected to the third
Lok Sabha (1962-67).

7
Similarly, no Muslim woman was elected to the 4 th, 5th, and 10th Lok Sabha.
However, two Muslim women were elected to the 6th Lok Sabha in 1977, apart
from two more in the bye-elections held in 1978 and 1981. While only one Muslim
woman was elected at the 1980 elections for the 7 th Lok Sabha, Muslim Women
started contesting in a big way from this point. The 1980 elections witnessed a
sudden spurt of enthusiasm among Muslim women to contest elections even as
independent candidates and the trend continued thereafter.

At the 1984 elections, six Muslim women who contested as independents or as

nominees of regional parties lost and only three were elected. Of the latter,
Begum Akbar Jahan was the widow of Sheikh Abdullah. Mohsina Kidwai’s wide
experience at both State and Central levels fetched her Congress Party
nomination. However, the third candidate, Abida Ahmed’s only qualification was
that she was the widow of Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, former President of India.

At the 1989 elections, only Subhashini Ali (Communist Party-Marxist) was

elected, while 11 other Muslim women contesting as independents forfeited their
deposits. As the 9th Lok Sabha could not run its full term, mid-term elections
were held in all the States 1991 and in Punjab in 1992. Continuing to evince
interest, 15 Muslim women contested the 1991 polls, except in Punjab. However,
established national parties largely ignored Muslim women, unless one already
held a track record (Mohsina Kidwai) or belonged to a dynasty with a hold at the
grassroots level and the means to fight elections. This left a majority of the
Muslim women contest under the banner of some existing party; even if it was
obscure and had no history of electoral success. The 10 th Lok Sabha did not have
a single Muslim woman.

At the elections to the eleventh Lok Sabha (1996), a record number of 37 Muslim
women contested, although the Congress Party entertained only to two Muslim
women: Mohsina Kidwai, a Congress loyalist, and Begum Noor Bano of the Royal
family of Rampur. The general elections held in 1998 for the 12 th Lok Sabha did
not throw up any surprises. Begum Noor Bano who made tall promises, lost the
election. The electorate found that once elected, she did not bother about the
problems of her electorate. (20)

Elections to the 13th Lok Sabha were held in 1999 due to the collapse of the
National Democratic Alliance government. Anti-incumbency factor helping,
Begum Noor Bano was elected under Congress banner. Other Muslim women
who contested either as independents or under the banner of regional parties
could not make it.

Out of the 355 women who contested the elections to the 14 th Lok Sabha in 2004,
only 45 women could win. In the bye elections held later, five more got elected,
taking the total to 50. Interestingly, at the 2004 elections Begum Noor Bano was

8
defeated by an ex-film actress. It was also for the first time that a recognized
Muslim Political Party (the All India Majlis e Ittehadul Muslimeen) supported a
woman candidate. However, Muslim women continued to seek sponsors among
the national and regional parties or fight as independents. The following Table
gives an abstract of the performance of Muslim women during 1980 to 2004.

Performance of Muslim women at the elections to the lower house of the Indian
parliament (1980-2004)
Election Nominated by Independents Total
Year
national state/local
parties /unrecognised
parties

Won Lost Won Lost Won Lost Won Lost

1980 .. 3 .. .. .. 6 .. 9

1984 1 .. 1 1 .. 5 2 6

1989 1 2 .. .. .. 9 1 11

1991 .. 7 .. 2 .. 6 .. 15

1996 1 3 .. 3 .. 30 1 36

1998 .. 2 .. 4 .. 8 .. 14

1999 1 1 .. 13 .. 11 1 25

2004 .. 5 2 8 .. 5 2 8

Total 4 23 3 31 .. 80 7 134
(Source: Government of India, Election Commission, Statistical Reports for the concerned years)

It will be seen from the above data that:

 No Muslim women fighting as independent could win;

 Over all success rate was less than five per cent; and
 Main parties sponsored less than 20% of Muslim women

Muslim Women in the Rajya Sabha

9
Muslim women have entered the Rajya Sabha either through a separate process
of election or by nomination. 15 Muslim women were elected or nominated to the
Rajya Sabha during the period 1952 to 2008. As the nation went to polls in
April-May 2009, there were only two Muslim women in the Lok Sabha and three
in the Rajya Sabha.

Women represent about fifty percent of any country’s population and they have
as much right as men in taking decisions relating to the family, the society and
the nation through political participation. Women have always been and continue
to be affected by decisions made by the male leaders, often with utter disregard to
the consequences of such decisions on women and children. Women are equally
entitled to play a meaningful role in determining their own destiny. For,
leadership is not the essential and inherent characteristic of men; training and
socialization make men and women acquire the capacity of leadership. No pre-
existing characteristic can be found in men and women. In fact, as essentialism is
of no application and validity, women have got to be empowered so that their
potentials for political leadership are actualized.

The necessity of women’s presence and participation in the society does not arise
from mere tokenism and symbolism. The experiences of many countries have
demonstrated that societies, in which women’s share in socio-political and
managerial levels has increased, have made much more progress and developed
more quickly. A true civil society will always be imperfect and improper without
women’s true presence and no society will be able to underpin the foundations of
a strong civilization, if it has made itself deprived from the presence,
participation and activities of half of its potentially capable population in the
public sphere.

But, even democracies have not been democratized to the extent of granting
gender equality. This is obvious from the low participation of women in politics at
the decision-making level in almost all countries, except the Nordic states, in
spite of the realisation that women’s presence in political leadership results, by
and large, in a healthy society and a corruption-free democracy.

If an increased presence of women in the legislative bodies is not realized,

‘women may gradually come to believe that they are merely used as subservient
voters who are intended to be forced to appear at the ballot boxes in the election
days and vote for the male candidates; to candidates who may not have much
concern for women’s demands and aspirations. This problem will give rise to
women’s frustration in the long run’. (21) Concepts of civil society, development,
and social justice will never find their true meaning without women’s presence,
role and sharing and will constantly remain volatile and improper.

Muslim women and political participation

10
While Indian women per se do face discrimination, even if covert, in matters
relating to employment and access to decision-making levels, Muslim women
suffer more than their Hindu and Christian sisters. Muslims of India are not a
homogeneous group. In the first instance, there is a wide difference between the
Muslims of the northern and southern parts of India, in terms of culture,
traditions, language and socio-economic status. A significant level of
acculturation is visible among the south Indian Muslims as compared to their
northern counterparts. Although the south Indian Muslim women are better off
in terms of their educational attainments and employment status, Muslim
women in both the northern and southern states of India regulate their lives
within the boundaries drawn by the males. Apart from curtailing most of their
rights, they are told that the primary duty of a true (meaning, conservative)
Muslim woman is to look after her husband and children. Even in the highly
literate Kerala state, where a number of Muslim women are elected to the
Panchayati Raj Institutions (the lower levels of administrative units), the Muslim
League insisted that they wear the Islamic dress (sari, full-sleeve blouse and
headgear) and do not attend meetings and public functions after sundown. They
were also advised to pay extra attention to their households, husbands and
children and ‘take care of their husbands' egos’, lest the wives' positions trigger
inferiority complex or jealousy in them.’ (22)

Unlike in the Hindu and Christian communities, where religion does not act as a
strict barrier to the advancement of women, the conservative character of the
Muslim community, its patriarchal society and its strong desire to maintain its
religious identity imposes restrictions on its women in the public space. While
strictly conservative Islamic societies do not allow their women to venture
outside their homes except with the permission of her husband or father, in
secular India the Muslim women, especially from the poor, uneducated and
socio-economically backward groups are under the influence of the Muslim
clergy. The latter often issues Fatwas restricting, if not totally curtailing,
women’s foray into the public space; be it in the field of education, employment
or seeking an elected office. From the perspective of intersectionality, Muslim
women from educated and socio-economically well off families enjoy better
freedom than others. When woman from such groups rise above the ordinary,
they are ignored, if not condemned outright. However, as a majority of the
Muslims in India are poor and educationally backward, their women suffer
oppression which denies them opportunities and creates barriers. Such
oppression depends upon to which intersection a Muslim woman belongs and the
form of oppression the individual experiences. For instance, India’s top tennis
player, Sania Mirza, had to face bitter criticism from the Muslim Clergy about her
attire. Shabana Azmi, a film star, invited a fatwa as she shaved off her head for a
role. However, their socio-economic status made them ignore such sneers and
Fatwas. But, Muslim women from not-so-well-to-do families entertaining

11
political ambitions had to suffer repeated defeats at the elections as the clergy
and the Muslim society did not back them up.

However, twentieth century has witnessed an awakening among Muslim women

in areas of political thought, literature and knowledge. In Egypt, Hoda Shaaraawi
founded the first women's federation in 1923 with women from the upper and
middle classes, to fight for abolition of the veil, child marriages, polygamy,
curbing the absolute right of men to divorce and for a right to vote.

Muslim women of India are also fighting for similar rights and redressal of
similar grievances and injustices. But, to be able to fight effectively, enough
Muslim women should be in the Parliament. For, if women of other religions in
the Parliament, who definitely understand and appreciate the problems of
Muslim women, plead their case, the Muslim community is bound to accuse that
they are interfering in the internal matters of the community.

Statistics reveal that Muslim women’s urge to enter the Parliament has been not
only increasing but the effort has been a sustained one. If women in general have
gender-specific problems and without their representation such problems may
get ignored in a male-dominated parliament, Muslim women have their own
religion-specific issues. While Hinduism neither precludes nor encourages its
women to take active part in politics, Islamic countries have not only never
encouraged their women to enter politics but have, instead, discouraged them
from doing so. Unlike in India, where religious leaders frown upon Muslim
women contesting elections but have not stopped them from voting, in
Bangladesh millions of women have never had the experience of voting due to
fatwa that voting involves women’s public interaction. It is only due to the efforts
of the government and NGOs that for the first time thousands of Bangladeshi
women cast their votes in the 2001 general election. (23)

Apart from religious leaders, even families often do not encourage women to take
up politics, unless they are ‘political families’. Dr. Najma Heptulla, former Deputy
Speaker of the Rajya Sabha, Mohsina Kidwai, Begum Abida Ahmed, Mehbooba
Mufti are examples of Muslim women, who belong to the elite class, are educated
and enjoy support from their families. In all these cases their families were
involved in the national movement, were influenced by liberal ideology and were
highly educated. (24) But, hundreds of Muslim women from ordinary families
interested in taking up politics have been contesting one or two elections and
then disappearing from the scene in the absence of family and community
support. Also, often the electors find it difficult to accept a woman to represent
them, unless she is already an accepted social worker and has proved her
commitment to the societal problems. If the candidate is a Muslim woman, it
appears that the community itself ignores her as is evidenced by Muslim women
contesting as independents losing the elections miserably, often polling a few

12
hundred votes and losing their security deposits. The question is why? Doesn’t
the community take pride if one of its women rises to a politically important
position? It is sad, but Muslim women have come to realize that they are being
denied their rights by the patriarchal society.

In 1996, the government had drafted a Bill providing 33 per cent reservation of
seats for women in the Parliament and legislative assemblies. But, refusing to
accommodate women, male politicians have repeatedly stone-walled the Bill. In
view of the difficulty in women (including Muslim women) entering the
parliament as independents, specific measures are necessary for increasing the
level of their participation. Even if the Reservation Bill becomes a Law, there is
no guarantee that Muslim women will benefit. However, Muslim women have
opposed any sub-quota for them within the 33 per cent, as the constitution does
not provide for religion-based reservation. They hold that if the Bill is passed in
its present form, it will automatically benefit women belonging to minorities and
other backward classes. Taking a pragmatic stand, Muslim women have
requested Muslim Members of the Parliament not to stall the Bill as it will give
them some hope to contest elections from the reserved seats. (25) In fact, the
demand for a sub-quota for Muslim women (and women belonging to ‘other
backward castes’) has been made by some political parties to stall the Women’s
Reservation Bill. Muslim women have rightly termed the demand of male
politicians is nothing but an attempt to delay and
keep the issue alive for their own political gains.(26)

By the 1990s, even in Muslim regions conditions had changed significantly,

leading to many women getting educated, become financially independent, and
reach positions of authority and responsibility. Even if only very few could reach
higher management ranks, through their public presence they reflected women's
aspirations and potential achievements. Having become conscious of the gap
between their human rights and social needs on the one hand, and their objective
conditions, on the other, women started to make public demands, posing a
challenge to the patriarchy.

Even in India many Muslim women have begun to take active interest in
theological arguments regarding women, claiming the right to interpret laws and
religious texts themselves and to learn the skills necessary for such
interpretation. They have begun to challenge andocentric and misogynist
interpretations of the texts and are determined to find in Islam justifications for
demanding individual freedom and women's rights. In other words, they have
joined the political struggle over the right to make their religion work for them.
(27) Examples lie in the drafting of an alternate Model Nikahnama (Marriage
Contract) by the All India Muslim Women’s Personal Law Board and starting of
an exclusive mosque for women in Tamilnadu.

13
There are highly competent Muslim women in different walks of life in India. The
presence of such women in the State Legislatures and Parliament will immensely
benefit the community; particularly its women and children. But then, it is for the
community to allow them to take the plunge. As a member of the All India
Muslim Personal Law Board observes, ‘unless Muslim women demand their
legitimate rights they will continue to suffer. Women themselves are not
demanding their rights and male ego would not allow it to concede their
demands. Women have to fight their own battle’. (28)

Conclusion

Muslim society of India is highly heterogeneous because of the influence of the

caste system, which has led to Indianisation of Islam. Indian Muslims are facing
various socio-economic problems born out of their educational backwardness.
The latter in Muslim women is additionally due to social and cultural factors and
the patriarchal nature of Islam as it is practiced in India. Leave alone higher
education, often even primary education is not easily accessible to them. Match
fixing within the kinship creates distraction among young girls and they lose
interest in education. If at all they are fortunate enough to go to a good school,
they are often discouraged from seeking higher education, especially overseas.
The more highly qualified a girl is, the less are her chances of finding a suitable
husband; often due to misconceptions regarding the ‘purity’ of highly educated
girls and those that have studied abroad. Women are conditioned to such an
exploitative situation in their lives and accept the laws passed by religious
leaders. The only solution to liberate them from the shackles of ignorance,
illiteracy, exploitation is through education.

Muslim women have social responsibility in Islam, which is derived from the
following Quranic verse: (29)

"And [as for] the believers, both men and women - they are friends and
protectors of one another: they enjoin the doing of what is right and
forbid the doing of what is wrong, and are constant in prayer, and render
the purifying dues, and pay heed unto God and His apostle. It is they upon
whom God will bestow His grace: verily, God is almighty, wise." (Quran
9:71)

This verse shows that women and men are to work together in the religious
realm (the reference to prayer), in the social realm (rendering purifying dues,
presumably to help the needy), and in the political and educational realm (the
reference to heeding God and His apostle - one must understand what God
commands and have a voice in society to heed God’s teachings). The references in
the verse to the activities required show that both women and men are to take an
active role in the society. (30)

14
Quite a few Islamic scholars assert that Islam, or Qur’an, does not prohibit
Muslim women from seeking a political office by contesting elections. They point
out that ‘there is nothing in the authentic sources of Islam that prevents women
from running for political offices if they are confident of their expertise and
credentials to make a positive difference - provided they are not doing so at the
expense of their greater responsibilities of nurturing and caring for their families.
Here, it must be stressed at all times that Islam considers a woman's role as a
mother to be the noblest duty she can ever perform; nothing else can replace it.
However, if her involvement in politics does not come in the way of this crucial
role, there is nothing in Islam to dissuade her from it’. (31)

Political involvement is a means to fulfil one’s obligations to the society and could
take many forms; from voting in elections, to holding a position as a legislator or
a judge, to being a head of state. Islamic history provides precedents for each of
these roles for women. By contesting even as independent candidates, Muslim
women have shown that given a chance and support, they do not shy away from
the public sphere; and in supporting them, their men reposed confidence in
them. A review of the profile of the Muslim women contestants reveals that not
all of them belong to Royal families and political families. Most of them were
married and belong to middle and upper-middle class families, educated and
were in the 25-50 age group. But, to win an election, they need the support of not
only their families but also the backing of a political party and community’s
encouragement. The very fact that most of the Muslim women polled very few
votes shows the lack of support from the community. As Muslim women cannot
have certain seats reserved for them even when the Women’s Reservation Bill
becomes a law, will the mainstream parties nominate Muslim women? If not,
should Muslim women continue to fight as independents; only to lose?

When the Women’s Reservation Bill becomes a law, the mainstream political
parties should allocate certain percentage of tickets to Muslim women in the
Assembly and Parliament elections. There is no dearth for competency among
Muslim women, who constitute an untapped resource. Driven by enthusiasm, a
number of Muslim women have entered politics through the Panchayat Raj
institutions, and some of them have been doing exceedingly well, aided by a
number of Muslim women's organisations. But, having to work within the
parameters of Islam, their approach has been problematic, as it tends to exclude
the active support of non-Muslim feminists. Muqtedar Khan explains Muslim
women’s conflict: (32)

‘(Muslim women) have been caught in the crossfire at many levels.

Whether it is the culture wars between Islam and the West, or the civil
wars between secularists and Islamists, Muslim women have to bear the
brunt of travails associated with these conflicts. Either they lose their
husbands and sons to the battlefield, or they lose their freedoms and

15
 dignity in the social arena. Tragedy and irony are the two dominant
themes of their existence. At times, they are victims of those who seek to
protect them and at other times, they are oppressed by those who seek to
emancipate them. Even when it comes to historical processes, Muslim
women are caught in the struggle between the imperialism of modernity
and the intransigence of traditions’.

Most Muslim Women’s organizations are mainly concerned with improving the
socio-economic conditions of the Muslim Women and eradicating social evils like
illiteracy, domestic violence, poverty, the veil, divorce, and the status of women
under Muslim Personal Law. “Religious approach has also created problems for
the organisations, as the activists are not theologians but, in their zeal, invite the
support of the Muslim clergy. Thus they lose on purely theological arguments, as
there is no feminist scholarship of Islam in India. This gives religious leaders
legitimacy to curb woman's rights. (33) What Muslim women need is education,
one that would enable them understand the rules and regulations and the
intricacies of administration in a government institution. Muslim women of
Kerala have shown that they could become computer literate and still be within
the boundaries of their religion.

Islamic laws do not compel women to remain confined to household duties.

Asghar Ali Engineer writes: ‘India being a secular democratic country there is
much more political and social space available to Muslim women in India
compared to their sisters in many other Muslim countries. To avail of this social
and political space increased awareness among women is needed. The greatest
stumbling block is poverty. One finds even great urge for modern education
among women but poverty pulls them down.’ (34)

Indian Muslims should encourage their boys and girls to take up secular
education along with religious education so as to compete in today’s world. There
is no point in rejecting secular education and bemoaning the community’s
poverty and backwardness. Muslim men have also to heed the Quranic edict and
allow their women discharge their obligations to the society. Muslim women in
India have political ambitions, lesser opportunities and more constraints. Muslin
men, including the Clergy, should repose faith in their women and allow them
contest elections to seek elected office and allow their girls to pursue education.
Only when the girls are educated can the Muslim community expect a change in
their lives.

___________________________

REFERENCES

16
1. Ahamed, Ishtiaque. ‘Plight of Muslim Women’ in The Sunday Times on the
web, 22 March 1998 (http://www.sundaytimes.lk/980322/plus8.html) (accessed
10 April 1998)

2. Ibid.

3. Afkhami, Mahnaz and Erika Friedl. Muslim Women and the Politics of
Participation: Implementing the Beijing Platform, Syracuse University Press,
1997. (http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=59644978) (Accessed 15 April
1998)

4. Ibid

5. Hassan, Farkhonda. ‘Islamic Women in Science’, Essays on Science and

Society, in Science, 6 October 2000, Vol. 290. No. 5489
(http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/290/5489/55) (accessed 12
August 2008)

6. At the 2003 elections to Bahrain Parliament, all women who contested lost. In
November 2006 only one woman could win out of 18. (Asharq Al-Awsat, English
language newspaper, 18 October 2006)

7. Parawansa, Khofifah Indar. Obstacles to women’s political participation in

Indonesia, in International IDEA, 2002, Women in Parliament, Stockholm,
pp.41-52 (Translation)
(http://www.idea.int/publications/wip/upload/CS_Indonesia_
Parawansa.pdf)

8. Ibid

9. Ibid

10. Warnock, John W. The Status of Women in Karzai’s Afghanistan, Global

Research, April 14, 2009. (http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?
context=va&aid=13184. Also see, Carolyn Tytler Women's Rights in Afghanistan
Today, February 3, 2009.
(http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1445341/womens_rights_in_afghan
istan_today.html?singlepage=true&cat=9)

11. Office of the President, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, 28 December 2009.

(http://president.gov.af/Contents/91/Documents/1115/women_en
g.html)

17
12. Reid, Rachel. Women Lose in Karzai's Power Play, in National Times, August
20, 2009. (http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/women-lose-in-karzais-power-
play-20090819-eqio.html)

13. Halder, Nomita. ‘Female Representation in Parliament: A Case Study from

Bangladesh’ in New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies, 6, 1 (June 2004):27-63,
(http://www.nzasia.org.nz/downloads/NZJAS-June04/6_1_3.pdf.) (Accessed 12
October 2008)

14. Quoted by Malavika Karlekar, ‘Reporting on Women in Panchayati Raj’

December 2002, in The Hoot.org, reproduced in India Together, 19 April 2008.
(http://www.indiatogether.org/women/media/snprize.htm) (Accessed 1 June
2008)

15. Sen, Samita. “Toward a Feminist Politics?: The Indian Women’s Movement in
Historical Perspective” Policy Research Report on Gender and Development,
Working Paper Series No.9, The World Bank, Development Research Group,
April 2000, (http: //www.worldbank.org/gender/prr) (Accessed 10 October
2008)

16. Anjum, Dr Darakhshan. “Role of Muslim Women in Freedom Movement”, in

Radiance Weekly, Vol. XLIV, No.28, 31 December 2006.
(http://www.radianceweekly.com/cover_story.php?content_id=179&issue_id=48)

17. Shahnawaz, Sehrish. Fathima Jinnah (1893-1967), (quoting Prof. Sharif El

Mijahid’s article ‘An Enduring Legacy’ in Dawn, July 2003), January 28, 2008,
in Pakistan Think Tank (http://pakistanthinktank.org/forums/viewtopic.php?
f=19&t=331)

18. Bhatty, Zarina. “Feminists or Reformists?” in The Hindu, 16 March 2003

(http://
www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mag/2003/03/16/stories/2003031600350400.
htm) (Accessed January 2007)

19. ibid.

20. Commenting on her chances at the 12th Lok Sabha elections, the voters of
Rampur quipped: ‘The Begum never stays in Rampur. She is either taking rest or
is in London. What will the people get by electing her? ‘She is her own worst
enemy’ in Tribune, Chandigarh, 2 April 2004

21. Shojaie, Zahra. Muslim Women, Politics and Civil Society, Paper presented at
the Second Annual Arab International Women’s Forum Conference, London, 24

18
October 2003. Zahra Shojaie was Advisor to the President of Iran on Women’s
Affairs. (http://www.aiwfonline.co.uk/downloads/dr%20zahra%20shojaie.pdf)

22. Basheer, K.P.M. ‘Where Muslim League lets Muslim Women down’, in the
Hindu dated 6 October 2001.

23. Halder, Nomita. ‘Female Representation in Parliament: A Case Study from

Bangladesh’ in New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies, 6, 1 (June 2004):27-63,
(http://www.nzasia.org.nz/downloads/NZJAS-June04/6_1_3.pdf.)

24. Lalita Kazmi, Women of Pakistan: Fatima Jinnah, 1893-1967, in Jazba

Magazine, (http://www.jazbah.org/fatima.php. Also see, Akbar S. Ahmed,
Jinnah, Pakistan and Islamic Identity, p13, Routledge 1997.)

25. Rai, Shirin. ’Class, Caste and Gender: Women in Parliament in India’ in
International IDEA, 2002, Women in Parliament, Stockholm
(http://www.idea.int/publications/wip/upload/CS_India.pdf)

26. Karat, Brinda. Survival and Emancipation: Notes from Indian Women’s
Struggles, Gurgaon, India (2005), Three Essays Collective, p.142.

27. ‘Muslim Women question male locus standi’ in the Indian Express, July 16,
1998

28. Op cit., n.3.

29. Women's Participation in Politics.

(http://www.crescentlife.com/thisthat/feminist
%20muslims/women_and_politics.htm) (Accessed March 2008)

30. Ibid.

31. Imamate and Political Systems, in IslamOnline.net,

(http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-
Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503548218) (accessed June 2008)

32. Khan, Muqtedar, M.A. ”Muslim Women: Between a Rock and a Hard Place”
in Muslim Women Studies, Bulletin board, Zahira Abdin, Chair for the Study of
Women and Gender, The Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences,
(http://www.muslimwomenstudies.com)

19
33. Bhatty, Zarina. “Feminists or Reformists?” in The Hindu, March 16, 2003
(http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mag/2003/03/16/stories/2003031600
350400.htm)

34. Engineer, Asghar Ali. ‘Muslim Women in Indian Society’ in Indian Muslims,
(http://www.indianmuslims.info/articles/asghar_ali_engineer/articles/muslim
_women_in_indian_society.html) (Accessed April 2008)

___________

(*) This paper was presented at the International Conference on Women in South Asia,
at Hildesheim, Germany. (Published in Women and Politics I Asia: A Springboard for
Democracy? (Eds.) Andrea F. and Claudia Derichs, LIT Verlag, Klosbachstr,107, CH-80-
32, Zurich.) Later, in 2014, a detailed study of Electoral Participation of Muslim Women
in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka was conducted with support from the Indian Council of
Social Science Research, Government of India.

20