Muslim women’s dharna against ‘ooruvilakku’

KOZHIKODE: Nisa Progressive Muslim Women’s Forum will organise an evening dharna on Tuesday at Mananchira urging the ban on practices of ‘ooruvilakku fatwa’, ‘muthalaq’ and ‘chadangu kalyanam’ rituals existing in the community. Prof Hameed Chendamangaloor will inaugurate the dharna.

V P Suhara, president of the Nisa Progressive Muslim Women’s Forum, told reporters here on Monday that due to the ‘Ooruvilakku’ of the Mahallu committee at Manalvayal Nusrathul Islam Sangam, the family of Jameela from Manalvayal in Kozhikode has been totally isolated. The isolation started when Jameela refused to obey the decision of the Mahallu committee to agree for ‘Chadangu Kalyanam’ to reunite with her husband who said talaque out of anger. Narrating the mental torture and insult meted out to her and her daughters, Jameela said the community has isolated the family for living with her husband A P Abdulla without ‘Chadangu Kalyanam’.

“The community is treating us very badly saying that the practice of reuniting with husband without the ‘Chadangu Kalyanam’ is against the practice of the community,” said A P Jameela. “Due to this isolation, we are finding it very difficult to marry off our daughters,” she added.

Elaborating the practices of Islam, Suhara said the present talaq system in the community is not proper and divorce should be allowed only through legal process. In Kasargod, it is learned that the women are being exploited by sex rackets in the name of ‘chadangu kalyanam’ ritual. She said NISA has decided to take legal action after studying the details of the case of Jameela.