India – SEDAA – Our Voices

The Kerala Story could have been a valiant effort to highlight religious tyranny, were it not for its misleading facts

7th June 2023 admin

By Khadija Khan A newly released Bollywood film that claims to tell the story of Hindu and Christian women who were lured into joining the Islamic State group has caused huge controversy in India. The Kerala Story – set in India’s southernmost state – has polarised opinions not only in the south Asian country, but also abroad. The filmmakers originally claimed that it is based on the “gut-wrenching stories of 32,000 females” who were allegedly forced to convert to Islam and then radicalised to join the death cult that…

India’s hijab row has been hijacked by the Hindu and Muslim right wing to score political points

20th March 2022 admin

By Khadija Khan For months now, a debate around hijab and free choice has been raging in India. This all was instigated in January, when a group of teenage girls at a Karnataka college claimed that they had been barred from entering their classroom while wearing a headscarf. The issue soon snowballed. The college’s decision sparked protests, forcing the state to shut schools and colleges for several days. These students started campaigning outside the college gates. Predictably, it provoked a counter demonstration from Hindu nationalist students who turned up outside…

Normalising the hijab

7th March 20175th May 2017 admin

By Arshia Malik There was recently a news report about Nike unveiling modest sportswear range – the Nike Pro Hijab . I recalled when we first got a male professional coach for basketball in 1988 and the all girls’ school team was being put together. Being the athlete that I was, I of course signed up and started looking for the usual: shorts; skirts; trainers and T-shirts — a requirement on the court. Gradually, the realisation that this was Srinagar and not New Delhi dawned as the first impediments to a normal,…

Of women and girls

5th December 20165th May 2017 admin

By Arshia Malik There is no end to the hypocrisy of Muslims. On the one hand, every time, a daughter is born, the only thing that looms large in the minds of the subcontinental Muslims is the daughter’s marriage. From birth onwards, they tend to see the female offspring as somebody to shove off the minute she is of the ”proper marriageable age” which can be anywhere from 15 to the ‘old maid’ 28. At every waking hour the talk around the home is centered around the ”dowry” they…

Indian Muslim Women: The New Warriors in the Fight for Justice

10th November 201626th September 2018 admin

By Arshia Malik It is a very crucial time for Indian Muslims, especially the women. The fight that they have entrenched themselves in for abolishing the triple talaq, the talaq halala and polygamy, all regressive practices in Islam with no Quranic sanction, just got bigger with the larger reform recommendation of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) projected under the slogan One Nation, One Law taken up by political parties. The Women’s Movement of India spearheading this revolutionary change is doing all it can to end the choke hold of…