ORIGINS, STRUCTURES, FUNCTIONS AND ALLIANCES OF MAHILA MANDALS MANAGED BY MUSLIM WOMEN

ORIGINS, STRUCTURES, FUNCTIONS AND ALLIANCES OF MAHILA MANDALS MANAGED BY MUSLIM WOMEN

Noorjehan Safia Niaz

Introduction

Many women’s organization offer legal counseling to women. However when it comes to providing legal aid they refer the women to lawyers. The lawyers with best of intentions try to help the women but the system does not allow them to do so. As a result of the inability of these state systems to remedy the situation and widespread incidences of domestic violence, informal systems have emerged and are gaining approval from the people as well as the state. Nari adalats and mahila panchayats are those innovative community responses to tackle violence. Mandated by article 39 A of the constitution, these community legal aid structures are people’s courts with people-friendly systems. Many organizations have tried to build the capacity of these structures to become Para legal workers and to make quasi-legal interventions on behalf of women in distress, including networking with the local police, state commissions for women, minority rights and human rights organizations and other government institutions and structure.  

In addition to the formal legal system and the above mentioned community based groups, there are multiple implementing agencies that make quasi-legal intervention on issues pertaining to legal problems of women. In case of the Muslim community there exist shariah court, qazis, muftis and jamaat [sect arbitration councils] that also arbitrate and settle family disputes. Muslim women access these bodies more readily as they have close contacts with the community unlike the secular court structures which are more distant, expensive and time consuming. Though accessible, these bodies are dominated by men with a patriarchal and conservative mindset whose actions are often based on anti-women interpretation of the religious texts and hence undermine the interests of the women.

In Mumbai in the last decade, many community based structures run by women have emerged. They call themselves mahila mandals [MMs]. They are playing a crucial role in making quasi-legal interventions on behalf of women in distress within their communities, even in the absence of a theoretical understanding of gender, patriarchy, feminism and the laws. Such MMs function as alternative dispute resolution forums which enjoy the confidence of the entire community which is the foundation on which the success of their strategies lies. Partnerships and symbiotic relationships also emerge between the members of such MMs and legal professionals who initiate litigation on behalf of distressed women in courts, when required.

MMs are community based organizations created by women to address issues which concern them. Although they may have a legal status [they are registered under the Public Trust Act or the Societies Registration Act], they do not necessarily function like an NGO. They comprise of women from the local community. They function informally and sporadically. The members are from the same geographical locality. They are also informal and are less or not paid so there is very little threat of financial instability as the requirement itself is very little. The expenses are also borne by the service seekers. The members of the MMs stay within the community and most often belong to the same caste or religion as the majority of the people within the community follow. Since they stay within the community, they know most of the families residing there. They are also available most of the time, even at odd times. Domestic violence happens anytime and if it happens in the night, the mandal members are accessible and intervene without much worry.  

Women visit the mandals after they have exhausted the family resources and before they go to the lawyer. A research done by Jagruti Kendra throws light on the attitudes of women who face domestic violence. Out of the 50 women, who were spoken to not one of them have gone to the court to solve their problem. Although a small sample, it does indicate that court is not the first institution that a woman thinks of when she thinks of justice. The reasons they give for not going to the court is that they do not have money, they do not have the time that will be required to pursue the matter and that they are very scared of the structure. They even say that by going to the court they will in fact increase their problems and not solve it. There are some who are not even aware of the existence of the courts. Parents are the first persons to whom a woman speaks when she faces domestic violence followed by friends. Only when the problem is not solved here do they go out further and seek the help of an active woman in the area and thereafter any informal body that might be functioning in the area. The formal court comes in the end or don’t come at all.

Genesis of Mahila Mandals

In this article the origin of Mahila Shakti Mandal [MSM]is explored and explained. The MSM was formed in 1995. The person who initiated the mandal, Khatoon Shaikh, was invited to attend a training programme on women’s rights. She was, after that in touch with the social worker called Nahida Shaikh. When Khatoon’s sister-in-law was facing the brunt of domestic violence she approached Nahida Shaikh who was then part of the Special Cell for Women and Children. While Nahida gave her legal support, the battered woman also needed support for her children and a roof over her head. To fulfill this need, Nahida referred Khatoon Shaikh to SAHARA, a project of Anjuman-e-Islam meant to provide support to distressed women. SAHARA not only gave a roof to Khatoon’s sister-in-law but also, on request from Khatoon Shaikh, agreed to facilitate the formation of a MM in Navpada where Khatoon Shaikh resided. Thus began the process of formation of MSM.

In its existence of 15 years the MSM has been supported by SAHARA earlier and latter by Women’s Research and Action Group. As the mandal began to function it was approached by distressed women for support. Initially they responded to women out of sheer empathy. They had no knowledge of law or procedures. They were scared of the police as the worst communal violence after independence had just been experienced. The sheer burden of private violence forced them to ignore the violence by the state. As if they inherently knew what justice is, they started provided legal aid to the women who approached them. The guardian organization was quick to start training and capacity building for this mandal. The focus of the capacity building programme was on developing an understanding of gender and violence. Soon topics like counseling techniques, legal education were added for women to carry out their activities in a professional manner. As victims got support and their cases got solved, they joined the same mandal to act as counselors to other women victims. The victim thus became a change agent.

It is intriguing and interesting to know that the MSM was formed just 3 years after the demolition of the Babri Masjid, widespread communal pogrom against the Muslim community and the serial bomb blasts that had ripped through Mumbai in 1993. Mumbai was particularly impacted in the second phase of riots in 1993 which actually was a state backed attack on the Muslim community. Amongst the many impact of the violence was also the forced entry of Muslim women in the public life. At the time of the violence women came out of their homes to protect their men and homes. Many women saw the police station for the first time, which they went to for lodging complaints against the perpetrators and for finding their missing family members. In the immediate aftermath, many families lost their male earning members and women were thus by force of circumstances became earning members and heads of the household. This was their first movement from private to the public. They realized their own power to defend their own families. So as Khatoon says, mahaul ban gaya tha.

Although there is no direct causal relationship between the communal violence and rise of Muslim women’s leadership, one can presume that violence did have a psycho-social impact on them which led to them taking on the charge of their lives and of the community. The women who initiated the mandal though were not directly impacted by the riots or the blasts, they were deeply psychologically affected. Khatoon Shaikh the founder member of the mandal took active part in the relief and rehabilitation work. The mandal comprised of women who were Muslims and who lived in Navpada which was gradually turning into a Muslim ghetto after the communal violence in December 1992 and January 1993. The activists of the mandal dovetailed their post riots intervention into the activities of the mandal which they started immediately. 

Challenges before the MSM and other such groups

These Muslim women who took on the leadership of the community faced many challenges. The road was not easy for them. At the time when they would leave their house to come to the mandal, they would become the laughing stock of their neighbours. They would be accused of making money or getting a salary. The leaders of these mandals fought this ridicule and negativity by telling themselves that they should now not look back and ignore the comments. Now after many years of their consistent efforts at running the mandal and improving their own conditions, the same people who ridiculed them are coming with their problems to them. The current president of the mandal says that they did not get this strength while sitting at home. They got it from the other women in the mandal. They felt that if they can do it why can’t we. With each case they gained strength and confidence in their own abilities. When they helped women retrieve her belongings, when they were able to get man into the police lock up for hitting his wife, when they cried with the other women and rejoiced with her when her case got solved, they got the strength to go ahead.

The men in the community too would say that these women have no other work and hence are breaking up families. ‘talaak dilane wali aurtein’. ‘ghar todu aurat’- they were given these names. But women came forward and said that they too wanted to form mandals and work like them. At that time there was only one group, now there are 30 such groups in the entire city.

As the mandal began its work, many litigants who visited them would say that the case is too complicated and that the mandal will not be able to solve it. The mandal took the challenge and took efforts to find a solution to her difficult. They would start contacting people in organizations, in the religious institutions, in the police station and slowly they would find a way out. As Khatoon says, ‘apne aap dimaag banta gaya’. They would not hesitate to pick up the phone and ask. This innate confidence helped them tide through the rough patch. For instance none of the mandal women at that time knew Hindi. The registers were written in Urdu. Then a visitor suggested to them they should write in Hindi because these are important documents which might be required in Charity Commission, Women’s Commission, in the court, in the police station. It must be written in a language which everyone can understand. This suggestion propelled the founder members and others to learn Hindi.

Some women’s organizations have also showed doubt over their counseling skills. They would say these are women from slum communities, who are uneducated and do not have a feminist perspective. But the mandal continued its work because they were sure that they are there to support women. Some members have been accused of taking bribes, of indulging in violence. Men who have been made to give lump sum maintenance to his wife by the mandal have made obscene and vulgar calls to the mandal members. Sometimes they get threatening calls too. Not just the mandal women but her family members also have to bear the brunt of their work. For instance Khatoon’s son was implicated in a false case of murder. On investigation with support from some sensitive police officers she realized that the false case was lodged by a local goon who was caught by her while he was sexually abusing young girls in the community. So to take revenge he implicated her son.

The mandal women were told by senior male members from the community that they should observe purdah and not talk to men, gair admi se awaz milake baat nahi karna chahiye. The local maulana would tell them that they should sit at home and manage the house. They would be told that the husband is her mijazi khuda. The mandal women would argue with such people by saying that they believe in the equality between women and men. They do not consider men to be lowly and hence they expect men to also not consider women to be lowly. Men will call themselves mizaji khuda because it goes in their favour.

The husbands of the mandal heads were also not spared. Men in the community would tell them that his wife now is becoming more famous and that now people know him through his wife. The husbands would then put pressure on their wives to cut down their activities and sit at home. Khatoon apa’s husband would always insist that she should put his name along with her own name. She would also tell him that if she is becoming famous, even he is becoming famous as she is known as his wife and the DIL of his family. She told him that even their jamaat is consulting her on issues of the community. That in some way convinced him that she is doing the right thing.  

The family is not always supportive. Fatima’s [President of Samjhauta Mahila Mandal] sons and her daughter in laws are not very happy with her work. They do not believe in her work and say that they are breaking up families and not benefiting anyone. It is only very recently that her elder son has become a little supportive. She continues to do her work inspite of the opposition simply because as she says, she likes to do the work that she is doing.

So a community which has no education or livelihood has been able to throw up women’s leadership in a big way. This is so because the Muslim women were leaderless so far. She was crushed within and outside her family. After forming the mandals they realized their own potential for being leaders. They are leaders now and are having interface with other stake holders within the community like the clerics, political leaders, and civil society groups. Now they have realized the leadership within them and can talk to anyone with confidence.

Mandal women negotiate and strategize in their own ways to come to the mandal. There is a lot of pressure from home to refrain them from attending the meetings but they strategize and come. Sometimes they lie and say that they are going for an istema [religious congregation] or that they are going to meet someone and then they come to the mandal. They take the risk because they want to come to the mandal. They are also often accused by family that they take the name of the mandal and go to roam about. Not all of them are supported by their husbands but they fight with them and come. When the president tells a particular member to go back and stay at home for some days till matters cool down, she refuses. She says she will fall ill if she stays at home. Conversely many men support their wives work in the mandal and encourages her as he feels she is doing good work.

A mandal woman does a lot of work in the mandal without any financial gains because through her work she gets respect in the area where she stays. She also becomes famous; people know her name and identify her. She also gains respect in the area from where the women litigant has come. Even if she is not leading the mandal and is just an ordinary member she earns a name for herself. Through these active members, the mandal gets visibility and more women approach it with their problems. It is a matter of pride for the founder members that their group members have become famous and have gained respect from many. Some mandal members would, rightly, ask for some compensation for their time which they give to the mandal. Since they are all poor and work to support themselves and their families, giving two hours in the mandal invites the wrath of their families. If they work for 2 hours to wash clothes, they would earn at least Rs. 500 per month.

Structures, Functions and Values of the MM

Membership

The MSM in 2009 has 35 officially registered members. These members have paid the membership fee and have filled up the forms. Out of these 35, 20 come regularly to the mandal, which is twice a week from 2 pm to 5 pm. Out of the 20 active members, 4 are non-Muslims and the rest are Muslims. The days which are fixed for meetings are Monday and Tuesday. Out of these 20, 5 are involved in counseling and legal aid. From the year 1995 till 2010 the mandal functioned without any of its workers being paid for their contribution.

Timing

The current president of the MSM comes on time, but the other members are always a little late. Some late comers come as late as 4 pm. There are no punishments for late comers as the mandal does not believe in pressuring any one for working in the mandal. None of the women are paid, all that they do in the mandal is voluntary, and they give their time and energy out of their own volition. The mandal women also support their own families by working outside and because of their commitments they are sometimes late or are not able to attend the mandal meetings. Since they are not paid they are not forced but they are pulled up if they are late or do not fulfill the responsibility that they have taken. If they take responsibility of any visit then they are accountable to the women and to the group and if she does not fulfill her responsibility the issue is taken up for discussion in the mandal.

The work does not suffer as there are always 4-5 women who are present at the time of the mandal. There is no fixed time to leave the mandal although officially they are supposed to close at 5 pm. Sometimes the negotiations and talks with the couple, sometimes the sheer number of cases in a day and sometimes the lengthy sharing by the women delays the members of the mandal. There are times when the litigant or the opposing party come from far off places and can manage to reach the office of the mandal at the time of closing. The mandal then shows sensitivity and take in the litigant or any other group. On such occasions the meetings go on till 7.30 pm also.

The mandal does not take new cases in the month of Ramzaan, but continues to do the follow up of old cases. When the attendance becomes very low and for a long time, the president issues a notice to all the members and they all come scurrying to the mandal with renewed promise to being regular. The mandal continues to function on the commitment of a few regular mandal members.

Office and its expenses

Currently the MSM is sharing its office with 3 other women’s groups. They are Hukook-e-Niswan Sanghatana and Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan and Samjhauta Mahila Mandal. All these groups are inter-related as in they owe their existence to the same supporting organization. All of them were supported by WRAG in their initiation and sustenance. The two mandals are also members of the Hukook-e-Niswan Sanghatana which is a Federation of 30 mahila mandals functioning in the city. The members of the Federation and of the two mandals are also members of the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan which is a national movement of Muslim women. In fact the Andolan is managed by a core team which comprises members of all the above mentioned groups. The same office is managed by all of them. The MSM sits for case intake on Monday and Tuesdays. The SMM sits on Wednesday and Thursday. The Federation meetings happen on the first Saturday of every month and the core team which comprises of representatives of all 4 meets every Friday to strengthen the work of the Andolan. The same office also functions as the State office of the Maharashtra Unit of the Andolan. The rent and administrative expenses of the office comes from an individual donor. Accounts of this donation are maintained meticulously. On request by mandals the litigants have also donated fan, chairs, and tables for the office. If other organizations hold meeting in their office they take rent from them. Off late the mandal takes a minimum of Re.1 donation from all those who visit the office. For donations received the mandal issues receipts. The mandal has its own letter head and the active members have a visiting card also.

Elections

The MSM onducts election every two years. Ideally it should happen every year but sometimes they are not able to manage it due to lack of time. In these elections they choose the president, vice-president, treasurer and secretary. The members can stand for any one post. It does happen that those who are elected do not fulfill their responsibilities. They do not come for the meetings nor do they call the meeting. There have been times when only 2-3 women have managed the mandal activities. But the work has never stopped. They have continued to take cases through the last 15 years.

The MSM had many names before this name was finalized. Just arriving at a name was a process in itself. All the members were asked to suggest names which were all listed down. Then an informal election was done to arrive at one name. After many changes and umpteen meetings this name was arrived at.

Case intake process

When a woman comes to the mandal she is asked to talk about her problem and register her case. She shares the details of her problem. She is then given an application form to be filled up. In the application her and her husbands address and phone number is noted down. Information about marriage and about her children is also taken in.  The mandal also takes two photographs, nikaahnama [marriage document], and copy of the complaints to the police if any. The mandal maintains a register and one photo is stuck to the register and one on her application form. Then her case is entered in the register and a fee of Rs. 300/- is taken from her. They listen to her entire story as not everything is written down in the application filled in by her. All details are written down in the register as she narrates her story. Details like how long is she married, how many years she stayed with her in-laws, how many years she was in her parents house, did the husband take her back and after how many months did he take her back, what were her difficulties, where did she deliver her child, did the husband come to take her back etc. Women in the mandal who are literate write all this information. She also writes letter to the police station, women’s commission or anywhere else that they may want to send a letter to support the woman.

Then the mandal women give her a time of eight days. They give her their visiting card and ask her to call back in 8 days. In the meanwhile a notice is sent to her husband and he is called to the mandal. They give him a date and time on which he should come and talk to the mandal. They tell the women to give a call to find out if her husband is coming or not as the husband may not necessarily come on the day on which he is called. Only if her husband is coming do they call her other wise her visit might go waste. Sometimes the husband can come on a Tuesday and not a Monday so they tell a woman to always call before coming.

On the day of joint meeting one amongst the mandal members talk to the husband. They decide beforehand as to who this woman will be. If all of them talk then the man will think that they are trying to scare him. They tell him that his wife had come to them and has told them the problems that she is facing and that she here to narrate her problems in front of him. The women is then encouraged to tell all her difficulties in front of her husband. Then the man tells them whether she is saying the truth or she is lying. If he says that she is lying then they tell him to tell the truth to the mandal according to him.

The interrogation of the husband goes on for hours on end. The husband most often counters the wife’s version. For e.g. If the wife has complained that the husband has not been maintaining her, and if he says that she is lying and that he has been giving her money, the mandal asks the husband as to how and when is the money given, is it given when somebody especially children are around, and if he gives maintenance then why do children go to the neighbors for food and why is his wife without any food in the house and why is she unhappy with him. If the man has been lying than that lie is caught through this conversation. There are also times, though not too often when the woman appears to be in the fault. In that case, she is made to understand her own faults in a separate meeting when her husband and in-laws are not called. This is done so that the women is not made to feel small and embarrassed in front of her husband against whom she has lodged the complaint. Criticism of the wife in front of the husband is avoided so as not to weaken the position of the women in the family in case she wants reconciliation and wants to go back. In any case in the end the woman is asked about her final decision. Based on her decision further talks with her husband and in laws are held.

The three mandals receive cases related to property, maintenance of women, maintenance of children, domestic violence, oral divorce, abandonment by husband. The mandal in its initial stages only took the cases of women as only women approached them. As they became successful in their support to women, more and more women started to approach them. And as their popularity spread, even men started to approach them with their domestic problems. The women sat together with the supporting organization to take a decision as to whether they can take the cases of men. The supporting organization did not take a decision for them but facilitated a discussion whereby the mandal women themselves will take a decision on that. After a lot of deliberation, the mandal decided to take the case of men with the intention of reaching out to the women. And their estimation was right as men who approached the mandal for help were actually the perpetrators of violence on their wives. Eventually the women against whom the man had lodged a case in the mandal got benefited. As time went by man who genuinely had a problem in their marriage approached the mandal and they intervened to solve the crisis. Some mandal women were not very comfortable taking up such cases as it meant that they had to summon the women for whom the mandal is actually working. This issue was again discussed in the meeting with the supporting organization and this dilemma had to be resolved as to how a women’s group can take up a case against another women. After discussion it was decided that if a man approaches the mandal, the mandal will take his case. But in order to call the woman to discuss the matter, the mandal will not issue her a notice. Instead a mandal woman will personally call the woman on the phone or visit her personally to tell her that her husband has approached them for help and being a women’s group working to support women, they would like to speak to her to know her side of the story. This process is followed in a very friendly and non-threatening manner so that the woman feels comfortable to come and talk.

Earlier the fees of the MMs was Rs. 50/- the objective behind was that just as they pay to a lawyer and get linked to her similarly when they pay they get linked to the mandal. When women pay fees they also have a sense of responsibility. The fees now has been increased to Rs. 300/-. In some cases where the women is very poor then they do not take anything from her. They in fact put in their own money for her and go with her to the police station, to her home or wherever else it is required. If there is reconciliation between the wife and the husband, then the follow up meeting is held with them as a couple or even with the women independently. Then every two three months, whenever they have time they go and meet them and visit them.

Values of the mahila mandals

The mandal feels that it is necessary to speak in favour of women because in a patrilocal society a woman leaves behind her house and her family and her entire support system to go on to stay with complete strangers. Right from the time she is born no attention has been given to her decisions. As Fatima says what is the point in making a mahila mandal if we are not able to give attention to a woman’s decision? In no other set up is her decision given any weightage. If she goes to the police station they say it is a matter between the husband and the wife and they send them back asking them to talk to each other. The police is not concerned about what happens to the women if she is sent back to her husband against her wishes.  There have been instances where the litigant has asked the mandal if they are taking responsibility of her safety if they ask her to go back. The mandal very rightly cannot take responsibility as none of them are going to be with her in that house. It is finally the woman who has to manage in that house and hence her decision is paramount.

The cases received by the mandal suggest that the in laws have very high expectations from their new daughter-in-law. So while it is the responsibility of the in laws to understand her, as Razia Begum puts it, us ko samet ke leve, they are actually very very demanding. Within 15 days of marriage they complain about her cooking, her sleeping habits, about her style of washing clothes. They are insensitive to the fact that she is not familiar with the house, with the cooking methods, with the layout of the house, about where the toilet is and where the bedroom is. There have been cases where the in-laws have sent the young bride back into her mother’s house to learn house keeping. In this period while she is still adjusting the man goes ahead to have another relationship. Because the woman is so helpless and vulnerable in this situation, the mandal feels that they should be supporting her.

The rules and regulations of the mandals are driven by these values. Their primary value is that when a woman comes to them they must listen to her carefully and with full attention. After documenting her case she is consoled and given assurance that she is now not alone and that the mandal will support her till the end. After reconciliation if she goes back to her marital home, the mandal women visit her to assess her situation in her house. These visits are done once every fortnight or once a month. There are times when the woman herself gives a call to the mandal and apprises them about her condition. There are times when the women feels that she cannot adjust and that she wants to give up on her efforts at working out the terms worked out during reconciliation. At such times the mandals tells her that her husband will try his best to break her spirit but she should adjust a little. If she does not want to go at all than they tell her husband that they cannot force her. If in the course of the counseling the mandal women opines that the women is at fault, then her faults are not expressed in front of her husband or her in-laws. It is told to her in a separate counseling session when her marital family is not around.

Although the prime concern of the mandals is women’s rights, they listen to the husband also. All members are instructed to not use abusive language and never to indulge in violence.

The mandals also want the women to be independent and take as much responsibility of her case as possible. Gulshan recounts an incident. Once a woman came to her and insisted that she went with her to the police station. Gulshan told her to go ahead, with the instruction that she will join her later. But she deliberately did not go. The women went to the police station on her own and solved her own problem. Thus the mandals tell the women not to depend on the organization but be self dependent. If she goes alone for the first time she will never ever need any one else. The next day the litigant told Gulshan that she understood why she did not come.

Conclusion

As India moves on as a secular, democratic republic, the MM presented in this article represents the decentralization of people’s movements. It represents the important fact that values like democracy, justice, freedom and fraternity are beginning to percolate down to the masses. Today we don’t need one Gandhi but many in each lane and by lane. Today we don’t need one big movement for fighting injustice but many mini-movements of, for and by ordinary people in just one city or town but all over India. The decentralization of power is also seen in the Muslim community. The shots are no longer called by a hand full of religious heads. The most vulnerable within the community, the Muslim women have begun their demands for a just, humane and peaceful life.  This article represents a glimpse of this emerging force of Muslim women.