Muslim women in India are in miserable condition: Uzma Naheed
By Md. Ali, TwoCircles.net
Uzma Naheed comes from a family of the founders of Darul Uloom Deoband. She is a member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and has been working for the upliftment of the Muslim women in India and abroad.
Though she comes from the religious establishment she is very critical of religious establishment for keep Muslims in intellectually and socially miserable condition.
In a candid interview with TwoCircles.net she talked about the situation of Muslim women in India, her work with IQRA, and the launch of IQRA International Women's Alliance (IIWA).
Her background:
Uzma Nahid comes from a family of the founders of University of Deoband. Her father Moulana Ahmad Salim Qasmi is the vice chancellor of the Darul Uloom Deoband Waqf.
Moulana Qasim Nanutwi the founder of the Darul Uloom Deoband was her grand grand father. The very famous Vice Chancellor of the Darul Uloom deoband, Qari Tayyab was her grand father.She was born in 1960 in Deoband. She completed her graduation from Aligarh Muslim University and did her masters in Islamic studies from Deoband itself.
On the situation of Muslim women in India:
She considered the situation of Muslim women in India as "miserable".
"We have visited all the states in India and we found Muslim women in miserable condition. I can feel their plight very well. They are neither opinion maker nor the decision maker. The most unfortunate thing is that they are not able to realize their loss. They don't know what kind of status they have got from Quran and the life of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)."
She came down heavily upon the men folk of the Muslim community. She pointed out that "the most tragic thing is that Muslim women have accepted happily and internalized the kinds of roles their men want them to live with. They are told that this is what they are made to do and which they should be happy doing"
She said the situation has gone so bad that they have surrendered their rights to men. "You go and ask any women be it a simple women or any Aalima about the concept of Talaq in Islam. They will simply tell you that it is the right of men. They don't have any idea whether even they have got some rights or not."
She criticized men for confining their women folks to only the household works and for making her feel that she is doing every thing. She said that it is not always the case that women are happy doing the household work. They can not be happy as such only by doing the household chores because this is what they do usually.
Apart from that she questions that if a woman doesn't want to do the household work does Islam compel her to do all the things which are otherwise portrayed as her aim of life?
She said categorically that there is no legal sanctity through which the Muslim men can justify the roles they have provided to the women.
Uzma Naheed speaking to TwoCircles.net
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