Trupti Desai enters Haji Ali dargah, stays away from sanctorum

Bhumata Brigade leader Trupti Desai on Thursday managed to enter the Haji Ali dargah with a group of women, but stayed away from the sanctum sanctorum. The group only went till the area where women are allowed. She had threats from Muslim organisations against entering the Haji Ali dargah.

Accompanied by policemen and security personnel, Ms Desai entered the dargah at around 6 am on Thursday. Speaking to The Asian Age, Ms Desai said, “It was a calm and peaceful atmosphere when we offered dua (prayers). I appeal to the dargah management to come one step forward and allow us entry till the dargah,” she said.

The 31-year-old is the chief of the Bhumata Brigade and has been leading a campaign demanding gender equality by abolishing the practice of not letting women enter various religious places in the state. Her efforts bore fruit when women were allowed to enter the Shani Shingnapur temple, ending a 400-year-old custom of not letting women inside.

On April 28, Ms Desai had reached Haji Ali with the intention of entering the dargah, but was met with resistance from various political parties and even the dargah trust. The incident led to massive scuffles that spilled onto the road leading to the dargah and ended with Ms Desai being escorted away by police officers. At the time, Ms Desai was not allowed to even enter the pathway to the dargah, but on Thursday she managed to go inside.

She said that the dargah should reconsider their stance on allowing women inside the inner area of the shrine. “Entry to women inside the sanctorium was allowed till 2012. The dargah trustees should allow women till the point where men are allowed within 15 days or we will launch an agitation,” Ms Desai said.

Other activists had mixed reactions about Ms Desai entering Haji Ali. Samiullah Ansari, president, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) Maharashtra, said that the traditions and laws of all religious places, including the mandirs, masjids and darghas should be respected. “The rights of both men and women have been laid out in the Shariat and there are certain boundaries which should be followed. If anyone crosses boundaries, problems arise. Please respect laws of all religions,” Mr Ansari urged.

Some groups fighting for the same cause have openly voiced that they don’t agree with the ways of Ms Desai. Senior social worker and convenor of the Haji Ali Sabke Liye Forum, Javed Anand said that the Forum had already disassociated itself from her. “Our style of working is different, her style is different and she is entitled to it. This is a sensitive issue and should be handled carefully. If mishandled, it could take a communal turn and become serious,” he said.

The Bombay high court is also hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the decision of Haji Ali Trust to ban the entry of women in the sanctum sanctorum of the historic dargah. It has kept its order pending till the Supreme Court, which is hearing a PIL, decided upon the issue of women entering Sabarimala temple.

Prof Zeenat Shaukat Ali of Wisdom Foundation said that the issue was sub-judice. “If Desai went and offered dua, it’s a good thing. But we have to wait for the HC ruling,” she said. Ms Ali, who is a professor of Islamic Studies, also stated that she had full faith in the judiciary. “Islam doesn’t discriminate between men and women. Throughout the world, you’ll find women going to mazhars (graves),” she added.