Protests at Haji Ali, in demand and against equal access to women

Activist Trupti Desai and other members of Bhumata Brigade outside Haji Ali Dargah in Mumbai pic.twitter.com/CObrabBiJU

— ANI (@ANI_news) April 28, 2016

“There is a strong need to speak out against anyone perpetrating oppression, irrespective of what their religion is. We can’t choose not to speak out of fear that we may offend the minority community. These are difficult times and we have to be prepared to fight for our rights,” writer Anjum Rajabali said.

Trupti Desai, president of Bhumata Brigade, which was instrumental in breaking the 400-year-old tradition of not letting women enter the inner sanctum of the Shani Shingnapur Temple and who has been vocal about the Haji Ali demand, was, however, not allowed to enter the Dargah by the Mumbai Police.

Today is the first day of our movement, so we’ll go till the point women are allowed and offer prayers: Activist Trupti Desai #HajiAli

— ANI (@ANI_news) April 28, 2016

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A case has also been registered against her for taking out a protest without permission.

Political activists from Samajwadi Party, Awami Vikas Party, Shiv Sena and the Majlis-e-Ittehadul-Muslimeen had lined up outside the Dargah to protest Desai’s entry. Desai, who reached the spot at 5:30 pm, was not even allowed to get out of her car. Some activists who were opposing her entry inside the Dargahtried to accost her but the police ensured she left the spot. “People tried to enter my car and beat me up,” Desai claimed.

We haven’t acted in haste, matter subjudice in court since 2012. We are demanding equal right for women-Trupti Desai pic.twitter.com/c537yJNF0G

— ANI (@ANI_news) April 28, 2016

Later in the evening, Desai was taken into custody by the Gamdevi Police as she headed to the chief minister’s house to voice her protest.
She had claimed that she would go only the point where women are allowed and would not cross the restriction laid down by the Dargah trustees. Those opposing Desai had, however, stated they would not allow her to enter the premises at all.

“This shrine is open for people of all faiths. However, just because she has challenged us that she will enter the Dargah, we will not allow her to enter today. Women are welcome but they will have to abide by the customs of the Dargah. No law can overrule the word of God and I will protest against those who want to violate it,” said Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Asim Azmi.

Shiv Sena leader Haji Arafat Shaik, who was inside the Dargah but was later forcibly escorted by the police, had threatened to blacken Desai’s face had she ‘dared’ to enter the Dargah premises.

The trustees of the Dargah meanwhile claimed that they were ready to hold discussions with the protestors on all issues barring their demand to enter the sanctum sanctorum.

“We have never stopped people of any faith from entering the Dargah. We are ready to meet the protestors. They can write to us and demand any other facility and we are willing to look into it. However, we will not allow the demand of letting women enter the sanctum sanctorum,” said Rizwan Merchant, one of the trustees of the Haji Ali Dargah.

Merchant also said that all the trustees of the Dargah had earmarked 275 square feet space exclusively for women within the three-foot sanctum sanctorum and a further 800 square feet outside. Compared to that, men, Merchant claimed, had only access to two narrow passages of 165 square feet each. They can, however, reach upto the grave and touch it.

The genesis of the conflict lies in a PIL filed by the Bhartiya Muslim Mahila Andolan in the High Court, asking the state to ensure that access to the inner sanctum was restored. “Our attempt was never to go inside the Dargah today. We wanted to protest about this discrimination and what happened today has made a lot of people lose their fear of talking about this issue,” said Feroze Mithiborwala, a patron of HASKL movement.

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