by Jaideep Mazumdar

At the best of times, Indian Muslims are seen as an inward-looking community, one that denies its women the most basic of rights. That is why Shabnam Ara Begum stands out as an exceptional woman. A slip of a girl, all of 26, Shabnam is the Muslim Marriage Registrar and honorary qazi of Nandigram village in West Bengal's East Midnapore district, about 170 kilometres from Calcutta. In fact, she is India's first woman qazi.

Across the Muslim world, a qazi functions like a judge, settling disputes and answering queries about the Shariat. Since the Muslim practice of nikaah is akin to a contract, any alim (learned person) can solemnise a marriage.

Asks a senior cleric, "Women hold so many important, responsible posts...so why can't Shabnam be a qazi?"

But Shabnam is a qazi who restricts herself to overseeing marriages in the community. Ever since her appointment in December 2003, she has solemnised over 770 marriages. Apart from a small honorarium, Shabnam gets a minimum of Rs 100 for her efforts. (This means that in 20 months,

Shabnam has earned nearly Rs 1 lakh, a large sum for a villager, let alone a woman.)

Shabnam would not be in the news now but for a case filed against her appointment in the Calcutta High Court. Her appointment was challenged by Mozammel Hossein, a Nandigram resident and a claimant to the post. As he puts it, "There is no provision in the Shariat for appointing a woman as qazi. Under Islamic law, women are not allowed to carry out tasks performed by men. All over the world, only men are qazis." He also points out that at the time of her appointment, Shabnam was below 25—the minimum qualifying age for a qazi.

Happily for her, on July 21, 2005, the high court ruled that it would not interfere in the case. Justice Girish Chandra Gupta referred the matter to the Inspector General of Registration (Judiciary) for adjudication within three months.

In two years, she has solemnised over 770 marriages. She gets a minimum of Rs 100, a small honorarium.

Lawyer Kaji Saifuddin Ahmad says it like it is: "She is the first woman qazi in India. Some men simply cannot bear this. They should see this as a big step forward for the community, one that inspires other Muslim women to get themselves educated and move forward in life instead of living in the shadow of the men."

The fact also sits lightly on Shabnam. "I have never faced any problems in solemnising marriages. I had been helping my father all these years as the naib qazi. I know everything about Islamic law and rituals and I've never faced any rejection or hostility when I go about my duties. I know some people don't want me to hold this post, but they're in a minority," she says.

Like most Indian girls, Shabnam's story began at her father's home. Abul Khair Mohammad Fazlur Rehman, a teacher at the Gomgur High Madrassa in Nadigram, was the qazi of the area—covering two administrative blocks of 125 villages with a population of 1.3 lakh. When, in 2000, he suffered a paralytic stroke, his youngest child, Shabnam, began assisting him in reading nikaahs. When the father passed away in 2003, she applied to the Inspector General Registration (Judiciary) for the post of qazi. Shabnam says being a woman places her in an "advantageous position" as far as being a qazi is concerned. "The brides speak to me more freely than they would to a man. Society has accepted me and I'm thankful to the Almighty for choosing me to do this work," she says.

What is heartening is that the local maulvis and clerics also support Shabnam's appointment. Says Mohammad Ismael, a senior cleric in the region: "She is diligent and conducts marriages as per Islamic law and local traditions. I see no dispute in her appointment. Islam is a progressive religion and women have pride of place in our society. Women hold so many important and responsible posts, so why can't a woman be a qazi?" Indeed, many members of the community believe that history was quietly made in this sleepy village when Shabnam was appointed qazi

Shabnam's family and many villagers have also rallied around her. Says her brother-in-law, Muzzammal Haque: "We took up the case as a challenge. It'll go a long way towards emancipation and empowerment of women...and not just for Muslim women in our area." The family has also received support from officials of the state government. Haque, a teacher at the Junakia Primary School in the area, also runs Shiksha Bharati, an NGO that works for education and empowerment of Muslim women. He points out that before seeking appointment as a qazi, Shabnam had sought the blessings of the Nandigram mufti and community elders. "Everyone felt that Shabnam had the right qualifications for the post since she had passed the High Madrassa and had experience in conducting marriages as the naib qazi," he says.

Shabnam's continuing as qazi has also become a test case for the "progressive movement" within Islam. As her lawyer points out, "Muslim marriages are contract marriages. Those challenging this appointment are doing great harm to Islam. They're misinterpreting the Quran and the Shariat and their views are retrograde. It's this kind of mindset that encourages extremism. Muslim women need to be liberated." Indeed, the fact that West Bengal's Left Front regime takes a progressive line on social issues has also helped place matters in perspective. Says Lok Sabha MP and ex-minorities affairs minister Mohammad Salim: "This muted opposition is primarily due to the fact that a majority of West Bengal's Muslims, even those in the poverty-steeped rural areas, are liberal and progressive." Statistics reveal that a larger number of Muslim girls study in schools and colleges, including madrassas, in West Bengal than most other states.

It is, in fact, revealing that Shabnam's appointment has the blessings of most of the state's Muslim politicians, including land reforms minister Abdur Rezzak Mollah. This, while in most parts of north India, Muslim affairs seem to have been hijacked by bodies like the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB). Says Salim: "There are some people with a regressive outlook but they are in a minority. We do not encourage backward thinking." What contributes to this mindset is the fact that the majority of Bengal's Muslims do not follow theological schools like Deoband or the Barelvis. Indeed, no one has considered referring the Shabnam matter to a theological school. It was Outlook that first informed the AIMPLB about a woman qazi. Spokesperson Qasim Rasool Ilyas merely said that "to the best of his knowledge women could not become qazis but he would have to know the details of the case before commenting further".

Calcutta's Shahi Imam Narur Rehman Barkati too does not believe a woman can officiate as a qazi as "it is against the Shariat". But he tends to believe in live and let live. "Many people don't follow the Islamic code strictly. Many women have come out of purdah. It is their personal choice. So if the people at Nandigram want a woman qazi, why should I complain?"

As for Shabnam herself, she is no burkha-clad woman. She wears saris, earns a good wage and is to date unmarried. Her family is searching for a suitable boy though. That will be one nikaah she won't be solemnising.
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Source: Outlook India