An overwhelming number of women told the study researchers that they felt a sense of betrayal, and loss of dignity and self-respect when the husband remarried
(From left) Noorjehan Safia Niaz, Zakia Soman, Javed Anand, Feroze Mithiborwala, and Shamsuddin Tamboli at the press conference. Pic/ATUL KAMBLE
The Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) — a firebrand organisation fighting for gender equality and the BMMA community allies — addressed the press at a conference on Tuesday afternoon at the Marathi Patrakar Sangh, Azad Maidan. At the meeting, the BMMA released a study of 2,500 victims of polygamy titled, ‘Lived Reality of 2500 Indian Muslim Women in Polygamous Marriages’, by BMMA co-founders Dr Noorjehan Safia Niaz and Zakia Soman.
Tears and trauma
The conference’s aim was to ask the State to apply Section 82 of the BNS against polygamy in the Muslim community. Activist Khatoon Shaikh said at the start of an emotive, eye-opening meet, “Reform in Muslim Family Law has been long overdue. Indian Muslim women are entitled to legal protection and safeguards similar to women from other communities. The BMMA’s PIL to end polygamy is with the Supreme Court.”
Shaikh handed the mike to polygamy victims. Tears flowed as women spoke about horrendous violence, abhorrent practices of husbands suddenly bringing in a second wife, completely blindsiding them or giving some kind of ad hoc, verbal divorce, using illegal triple talaq to abandon the first wife. The women spoke of physical and mental abuse… wife bashing. Most of them said that they did not have strong family support. They also could get little help from the police, as complaints elicited the response that polygamy was permissible in the Muslim community. What came through most strongly was the erosion of any shred of dignity for the first wife. The issue was compounded by educational and economic deprivation, as they were in no position to raise their voice.
An overwhelming number of women told the study researchers that they felt a sense of betrayal, and loss of dignity and self-respect when the husband remarried. Most times, victims said, the man could not afford another wife but married simply because it was permissible. The BMMA spokespersons added, “Conservative ulemas have never allowed any possibility of reform; even mentioning reform is blasphemous, as we learnt the hard way in the course of our work. They invariably raise the bogey of ‘Islam in danger’ and ‘Shariat in danger’ whenever voices demanding gender justice are raised.”
Equality is all
The first segment of the press meet ended with victims telling their story. Then activists took the dais. Niaz read from the study with statistics telling the story of deeply unequal treatment. Soman stated, “This law against polygamy is needed because of gender justice. Men and women are equal. There is no protection in the law for women.” Javed Anand of Indian Muslims for Secular Democracy (IMSD) said, “We have always been against polygamy. This is a societal ill that can be healed by a law.”
Feroze Mithiborwala of IMSD stated, “This is an epic study. Importantly, it is a demand from within the community wherein women are stating they do not want polygamy.” Shamsuddin Tamboli, president, Satyashodhak Mandal, said about study: “This has shown the mirror to society.”
A lived reality
In the end, the study showed that we must not forget the other victims of polygamy — the children. The study highlighted that children of first wives are far more affected emotionally, and feelings of anger and betrayal are stronger among the first wife’s children, reflecting deep emotional hurt. For the press, the study threw up numbers and observations, and the panellists made their points. Yet in that room, for women who wept as they spoke, and there are more like them, this abuse is a lived reality.
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