Mosque spokesman Zabiullah Khan said, the entry of women is not restricted. When girls come alone, they do inappropriate things, shoot videos. To prevent this, restrictions have been imposed. There is no restriction on families and married couples.
Image Credit source: TV9
Delhi There are three doors to enter the Jama Masjid. JAMA Masjid The administration banned the entry of single girl or girls by putting a notice on all the three doors of the mosque. It is written on this notice, admission of girl or girls alone in Jama Masjid is prohibited. No reason has been given for the ban. The date of putting it on the notice is also not written, but it is believed that these notices have been put up recently. When this matter came to light, the spokesperson of the mosque, Zabiullah Khan, said, the entry of women is not restricted. When girls come alone, they do inappropriate things, shoot videos. To prevent this, restrictions have been imposed. There is no restriction on families and married couples. Religious places should not be made places of inappropriate meetings. Hence the ban. The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi had also expressed displeasure over this decision of the mosque administration and requested to withdraw this decision.
women commission notice to imam
As soon as the news of ban on entry of girls in Jama Masjid spread, politics started regarding it. Syed Ahmed Bukhari, the Imam of Jama Masjid, came under target regarding the ban. Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) Chairperson Swati Maliwal swung into action. Describing it as a violation of women’s rights, he said that the Imam of Jama Masjid has no right to impose such restrictions. He tweeted, banning the entry of women in Jama Masjid is completely wrong. Like men, women also have the right to worship. I am issuing notice to the Imam of Jama Masjid. No one has the right to ban the entry of women in this manner.
Hindu organizations also protested
Hindu organizations also jumped into the fray against this decision of the Jama Masjid administration. Vinod Bansal, spokesperson of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, criticized this and tweeted that these Muslim fundamentalists, who have the mentality of making India Syria, are not even taking lessons from the incidents in Iran, this is India. The government here is emphasizing on save daughter, educate daughter. His statement got a lot of support on Twitter. On behalf of Hindu organisations, this decision of the Jama Masjid administration is being described as Talibani thinking. There has been a ruckus on social media about this. Jama Masjid administration is being severely criticized. Hindu organizations are also raising questions about the silence of Asaduddin Owaisi, who considers himself the national leader of Muslims on this issue.
Imam Bukhari had to give clarification
After the uproar over this decision of the Jama Masjid administration, the Imam of this mosque, Said Ahmed Bukhari, had to come forward to give clarification. He clarified that this is not an order for the girls coming to offer Namaz. According to Syed Ahmed Bukhari, this decision has been taken after some incidents came to the fore in the mosque premises. He told a news agency, Jama Masjid is a place of worship and people are welcome for it, but girls are coming alone and waiting for their friends… This place is not for this purpose. There is a ban on this. Bukhari said, any such place, whether it is a mosque, a temple or a gurudwara, is a place of worship. There is no restriction on coming for this work. Today itself 20-25 girls came and they were allowed to take admission.
what do muslim women say
The opinion of Muslim women is also divided on the decision of the administration of Jama Masjid to ban the entry of single girls in the mosque. Some women consider it justified, while some consider such restrictions completely unnecessary. Senior journalist and social worker Sheeba Aslam Fahmi says, my house is very close to Jama Masjid. There was a lot of complaint from the people around the mosque that girls were often seen doing inappropriate things with boys in the mosque premises.
Many times girls in short clothes were seen making videos inside the mosque premises. There was also a dispute over stopping them. There has been an argument with them, but the mosque administration should not have directly banned the entry of girls. Necessary steps should have been taken to stop such activities. On the other hand, social worker Shabnam Jahan says that such a ban is completely unfair. When women are being allowed to go alone to Mecca and Madina during Hajj and Umrah, then there is no reason to stop them from going alone to Jama Masjid.
what do reformist muslims say
This decision of the Jama Masjid administration is not acceptable to the Muslims who are campaigning for reforms in the Muslim society. Dr. MJ Khan, President of Indian Muslim for Progress and Reforms ie Impar, an organization working for reforms in the Muslim society, says that when the restrictions imposed on Muslim Muslim women are being relaxed in Muslim countries around the world, then India is in such a situation. Such a ban cannot be justified at all in this country. The Jama Masjid administration should have avoided banning the entry of girls. If the girls do some wrong things in the mosque premises then proper steps could have been taken to stop them.
For this, videography could have been banned. Dr. MJ Khan says that it is not appropriate to give a communal color to such a decision. Hindu organizations should refrain from commenting on this. It has been seen many times that Muslim organizations take a decision in haste and later they realize their mistake. Jama Masjid administration is also realizing the mistake of its decision after the ruckus. That is why even the Imam of the mosque, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, had to give an explanation. But after the snake has left, there is no use of beating with sticks.
It is true that whether it is a mosque, a temple or a gurudwara, some boys and girls make it a meeting point. Sometimes they also do inappropriate things. It is better that such antics are either ignored. If things are increasing beyond limits, then proper arrangements should be made to stop them. Banning the entry of girls in the mosque is not the solution to the issue. If this is the solution, then only boys should be banned. Only girls are not responsible for this. Islam is a religion based on equality. When will the Muslim religious leaders and organizations claiming to be the leader of the religion understand that such decisions reek of gender discrimination.
Source: www.tv9hindi.com”