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Journalism of Courage
For over 200 years, their romance has weathered many storms in the dariya (sea) across the Rann. These men from villages around Naliya in Abdasa Taluka have brought home their brides from Karachi, who are now in the never-ending queue for an Indian identity.
Long delays in getting citizenship for brides (some are waiting for 30 years) seem to have taken the sheen off the affair. There are repeated Intelligence Bureau checks and inspection visits. And then there is a long journey to district headquarters Bhuj for verifications.
Take for instance, Hawabai Ali Mohamad. When she turned 16 in 1970, her father in Karachi took her to Raidhanpur village in Abdasa Taluka to get her married to Ali Mohammad.
Almost four decades later, she is still a Pakistani national, waiting for the government to process the paperwork.
“I don’t know what the problem is. I came to India on a valid visa. The officials say everything is fine, but I never get the citizenship. I have ten children and four grandchildren, all born here. Still I need a permit to stay here,” says Hawabai.
Ali Mohammad, Hawabai’s husband, says, “We have to go to Bhuj either to the Intelligence Bureau or before the Collector almost every month for something or the other. I survive on daily wages and it’s difficult to make ends meet. The residence permit comes for Rs 340 for a year.”
Kutch’s marital ties with villages in Sindh and Karachi date back to pre-Partition days when Kutchi youth vied for brides from neighbouring Sindh and distant Karachi and ‘baraat’ processions travelled long distances across the Rann. If a groom found a bride from Sindh, his own sister may marry in a Sindh village. It is not only the Muslims living in these villages who maintained these ties, but even thousands of Hindu families with affiliations across the Rann.
Post-partition, the traditional ties between the two divided regions continued till late 1980s. The last recorded cross-border wedding took place in 2001.
Locals say that there are more than 50 women in the Naliya region who have not got the citizenship despite applying for it about 20 years back. Not getting citizenship means that these women do not have bank accounts or names in the ration cards. In case their husbands die, the property doesn’t go to them but generally to a relative because of the nationality question.
Villagers say that several decades back, there were over 5,000 such couples living in various villages of Abdasa taluka. However, village elders now discourage the practice.
Says Usman Sale Mohammad, the deputy sarpanch of Budia village, “I have asked people in my village not to marry girls from Pakistan. It is difficult for Muslims to get citizenship. I know four Sodha Hindu girls who got it within two years. I also know of many Muslim women that have died but not got citizenship.”
R R Varsani, District Collector, Kutch says, “There is absolutely no discrimination. In fact, both the Centre and the state government have conducted massive drives to grant citizenship in such cases. If any one is left out, they should approach us. Also, these issues require the highest level of clearance which take into account things like Intelligence reports.”
