In a landmark judgment, the Bombay High Court lifted the ban imposed on women from entering the inner sanctum of Mumbai’s Haji Ali Dargah on Friday.
The decision came after a PIL challenging a 2011 ban stated that gender justice is inherent in the Quran, and there is no prohibition on women visiting graves.
As many activists welcome the decision of the court, here’s a timeline of events:
Before March 2011 – No discrimation against women
Prior to 2011, the Dargah did not discriminate against women and allowed free entry of people across religions.
March 2011 – Trust decides against women access
On March 2011, the Dargah’s board of trustees imposed a ban on women’s entry, calling it a “grievous sin”. It is a sin as per Islam for women to be in close proximity of a male Muslim saint’s grave, they said.
June 2012 – BMMA filed a PIL in Bombay HC
Noorjehan Fiaz and Zakia Soman, founders of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA), petitioned the Bombay High Court against the ban, calling it unconstitutional. The 2011 ban violates the women’s right to freedom of religion enshrined in Article 25 of the constitution, they said.
January 2016 – Muslim women staged protest
Muslim women across Mumbai staged protests to lift the ban against women’s entry in the Dargah. They demanded that women should be allowed to pray in the sanctum of the famous shrine, but the clerics called their demands “un-Islamic”.
February 2016 – Maharashta govt supported women’s entry to the Dargah
April 2016 – Trupti Desai campaigns to enter the Haji Ali Dargah
Bhumata Ranragini Brigade leader and activist, Trupti Desai, visited the Haji Ali Dargah and offered her prayers. Although she did not go inside the shrine, she went till the point where women were allowed to go and prayed for women to be allowed in the dargah soon.
Aug 2016 – Bombay HC allows women to enter the inner sanctum of the Dargah.
In a historic judgment, the Bombay High Court allows women’s entry into the inner sanctum of the Dargah.
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