Muslim women’s forum demands change in personal law

The get together questions law of inheritance for daughters upon their father’s death and women’s equal right to seek divorce

The Forum for Muslim Women’s Gender Justice has demanded the State and Central governments consider gender inequality and violation of constitutional rights of Muslim women in the Indian Muslim Personal Law and support the rights of Muslim women in connection with the Special Leave Petition that has already been filed in the Supreme Court in 2016.

‘Uyirppu 2023’, a State-level get together under the forum in Kozhikode on Sunday pointed out the need to democratise the Muslim community to resist the anti-Muslim campaign going on in the country. Realising that a uniform civil code will only serve to convert India into a country without diversity, the Muslim community should stay united to come up with a means to ensure gender equity within it, a motion passed at ‘Uyirppu’ said.

The get together was inaugurated by Shareefa Khanam, known for her fights for the rights of Muslim women in Tamil Nadu. She was instrumental in forming the first completely women’s jamaat in the State and a mosque for women. In her address, Ms. Khanam said that Muslims, including religious leaders, were not questioning the injustices against women in their community. She said that the discrimination against women in personal law was not a religious issue, but an attitudinal issue.

Convenor of the forum M. Sulfath said that an amendment to Muslim Personal Law was not impossible as the country had no problem changing the Hindu and Christian personal laws and the respective laws of inheritance long ago without connecting it to the Uniform Civil Code.

The get together particularly questioned the law of inheritance for daughters upon their father’s death and the women’s equal right to seek divorce.

Chairperson of the Forum V.P. Zuhra presided over the event while vice chairperson Khadeeja Mumtaz presented the motion.

Celebrities such as director P.T. Kunhumuhammed, actor Nilambur Ayisha, writers K.E.N. Kunhammad, P.K. Parakkadavu, Shihabuddeen Poithumkadavu, and activist K. Ajitha took part in the get together.