NRI Muslim Woman, Zahara Begum, Strives To Promote Religious Harmony in Telugu States
New Age
Islam News Bureau
12
June 2023
• NRI Muslim Woman, Zahara Begum, Strives To Promote Religious Harmony in
Telugu States
• Iran Govt's Tech to Scan Women without Hijab Sends Warning SMSs to
Long-Haired Men
• Iranian Clerics Differ On Forcing Women to Wear the Hijab
• Amidst ‘Love Jihad’ Discourse, Tripura Muslim Woman, Jarina Begum,
Marries Hindu Man, Changes Religion
• Ex-Scottish Leader, Nicola Sturgeon, Issues Comment on Her Arrest
• Pakistani Women Playing Key Roles in Hajj Mission
• Muslim Women Delegation met DCP Dr PraviMundhe Zone 1 regarding increase
Crime in South Mumbai
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/nri-muslim-woman-zahara-religious-harmony/d/129976
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NRI
Muslim Woman, Zahara Begum
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12th June 2023
By Bandhavi Annam
GUNTUR: An NRI
Muslim woman is striving to promote religious harmony, besides upholding a
diverse culture of India. Zahara Begum, who hails from Guntur, now lives in
Michigan, USA. She has contributed a lot to developing places of worship of
different religions to promote harmony in rural areas of two Telugu States in
the last 10 years through Tahera Trust set up after her mother.
The trust is
engaged in highlighting the diverse culture of India on international
platforms.
In a telephonic
conversation with TNIE, she said, “India is the largest democracy in the world.
We need to start a fresh era of unity with respect, love, cooperation,
coordination and understanding one another, displaying the real strength of
India to the rest of the world at a time when its cultural diversity faces a
threat.”
On the occasion of
the inauguration of the Statue of Equality at Shamshabad in Hyderabad, a
massive event ‘Rise to Equality’ was organised by Zahara in Michigan, in which
members of over 80 national organisations from all across the world
participated and discussed the equality of all religions. She also encouraged
the Muslim community not only in India, but also in the US to contribute to the
construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Responding to her call, people from non-Hindu
communities had taken up campaigns to mobilise funds for temple construction
and promote religious harmony.
“We have to forget
the past battles and work constructively for unity and communal harmony. The
temple and masjid at Ayodhya are the symbols of unity in diversity. So, we all
need to be happy and proud in participating all endeavours to promote religious
harmony,” she observed.
On her request,
Michigan Senator Jim Runestad introduced a resolution to recognise the
historic, cultural and religious significance of the Diwali festival. For her
outstanding service in maintaining religious harmony, she received the Award of
Excellence from Tridandi Srimannarayana Ramanuja Chinna Jeeyar Swami on the
occasion of the 1006th Sri Ramanujacharya Jayanti in Hyderabad. In recognition
of her endeavour to promote communal harmony, she got a standing ovation at the
Senate of Michigan.
As an advisor to
the Cricket Association for the Blind in India, she introduced, organised, and
sponsored the second T20 world cricket match for the blind in Andhra Pradesh
and Telangana, a first in the history of two Telugu States.
Source: newindianexpress.com
https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhra-pradesh/2023/jun/12/nri-muslim-woman-strives-to-promote-religious-harmony-in-telugu-states-2584182.html
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Iran Govt's Tech to
Scan Women without Hijab Sends Warning SMSs to Long-Haired Men
Photo:
News 18
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JUNE 12, 2023
The Iranian
government’s attempts to use technology to enforce dress code on women has been
met with backlash and derision on social media.
The Iranian police
chief Ahmad Reza Radan in April announced that Tehran is launching a ‘smart’
programme to identify women failing to cover their hair or wear loose-fitting
clothing in public spaces using surveillance cameras and threatened to fine and
imprison them.
The police chief
also warned earlier that if women were seen travelling in cars more than once
without the hijab their vehicles would be confiscated. Businesses were also
warned against turning a blind eye and threatened with closures if enforcement
failed.
A report by the BBC
pointed out that Radan’s move was met with derision on social media.
However, a woman
told the BBC that she received an SMS from the authorities after her car was
flagged for carrying people who violated the dress code. But when a man
received an SMS for travelling without a headscarf and that too when he was not
travelling with a woman, people pointed out that the cameras were not accurate.
The BBC report
highlighted that the man later sent his photo to the news agency which revealed
he had long hair, which might have confused the cameras.
“Dear citizen, it
is necessary to respect and comply with the law of the hijab,” is the SMS that
many men told the BBC that they received. “Is this how smart your technology
is,” a man said on social media in response.
“The confiscation
of cars because of a lack of hijab has no legal basis in the constitution and
is a crime,” Iranian citizen Mohsen Borhani said in a tweet.
Meanwhile, women,
young and old, said that they would resist the diktat from the Iranian
government even though there is an increased risk of being punished.
Iran was in turmoil
for at least two months following the death of Mahsa Amini last September in
the custody of the Iranian moral police aka, the Gasht-e-Ershad. The moral
police responsible for enforcing strict dressing rules on women in public
places allegedly hit her on the head, leading to a grievous injury that led to
her death.
Chants of women
shouting “Woman, Life, Freedom” and burning their headscarves or waving them in
the air captured global attention. Women speaking to the BBC said that Iranian
women will not surrender.
“This is an Islamic
dictatorship, one of its main pillars is the oppression and control of women,
that is why the fight against mandatory hijab is something that really shakes
the core of this system,” a woman was quoted as saying by the BBC.
Source: news18.com
https://www.news18.com/world/iran-govts-tech-to-scan-women-without-hijab-sends-warning-smss-to-long-haired-men-8057407.html
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Iranian Clerics
Differ On Forcing Women To Wear The Hijab
11-06-23
Friday prayer Imams
loyal to the Iranian regime have defended government policies in their sermons
to intervene in women's lifestyle, especially enforcing hijab.
On the other hand,
reformist clerics suggested that the government had better stop putting
religious pressure on citizens to “guide them to heaven.”
The Imam in Tehran,
Mohamad-Javad Haj-Aliakbari, said that "the enemy" is spreading
nihilism in Iran, adding that "In a year when we are getting close to the
Majles [parliament] and Assembly of Experts elections, the enemy is trying to
sow despair and heresy in Iran."
The term enemy,
regularly used by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his loyalists, refers to the
United States. By making this statement the Friday Imam was attributing Iranian
women's defiance to compulsory hijab to a conspiracy by the United States.
Iranian clerics and
regime officials invariably attribute their failures in various cultural,
political and economic areas to the United States or the pre-revolution
government that was replaced by the Islamic Republic 44 years ago.
The Tehran Imam
said the West is waging a cultural onslaught against Iran to stop the country's
progress in areas such as missile development. Meanwhile he accused Iranian
women of not being chaste enough as they follow the West's teachings.
In another
development Ahmad Alamolhoda, the Friday Prayers Imam of Mashad said: "The
Islamic revolution's aim was not simply feeding the people and improving the
economy. We did not simply want to give political control to the pious and
expel US mercenaries from Iran. The aim was to allow the people to live
freely."
However,
Alamolhoda. a staunch supporter of compulsory hijab and one of the biggest
defenders of clerical rule in Iran did not explain how the Islamic Republic or
his own ideology would let people live freely. Meanwhile he praised the Islamic
Republic's "achievement" in developing a “supersonic missile” that
can reach Israel in less than 10 minutes.
Alamolhoda is the
father-in-law of President Ebrahim Raisi and enjoys some influence with
Khamenei.
As if he was
responding to Alamolhoda,Sunni Leader Mawlana Abdolhamid, who led the Friday
prayers in Zahedan, said, "Good for you if you can make missiles, but you
need to feed the people first." His comment was a reference to Iran's
economic crisis that has been pushing millions of Iranians under the poverty
line particularly during the past two years.
Meanwhile, Iran's
former reformist President Mohammad Khatami criticized the government's
approach to hijab and hardliner clerics such as Alamolhoda's insults against
Iranian women who brand women without hijab as "unchaste." Khatami
said: "Hijab and chastity are two different things," adding that
hardliner "clerics should not impose the hijab on the Iranian
society."
He pointed out that
hijab is a matter of choice, and it should not be imposed on women. He
suggested that hardliners should avoid imposing "backward" ideas on
the society. He added that "Islam should respond to the needs of the
modern world." Khatami further stressed that "Women need to be
respected if we wish to move toward a better future."
Khatami said:
"You should be a human being first and then decide whether you want to be
a religious person." He reiterated that there should be no difference
between men and women in terms of freedom and dignity and we understand that
there will be no limit to our growth."
Meanwhile,
Khatami's former chief of staff, Mohammad Ali Abtahi said: "The affairs of
the state cannot be furthered by forcing the people and pushing them into
paradise, but some of the country's decision-makers believe that this is a good
way of running the country and anyone against it should be suppressed." He
called on the government to respect the preferred lifestyle of young Iranians.
Source: iranintl.com
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202306117894
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Amidst ‘Love Jihad’
Discourse, Tripura Muslim Woman, Jarina Begum, Marries Hindu Man, Changes
Religion
Jarina Begum, 22, a
resident of the Jarilangpada village of Teliamura sub-division in Khowai
district, and Ranjit Debnath from the UttorChebri village, also 22, eloped on
May 2 and got married.
Written by Debraj
Deb
June 11, 2023
tripuramuslim woman
marries hindumanThe leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)'s Tripura chapter
Mahendrapal Singh said Sonali married Ranjit and voluntarily adopted his
religion. (Photo: Representational)
Amidst the raging
controversy over the purported ‘love jihad’, a Muslim woman in Tripura Saturday
married a Hindu man and changed her religion.
Jarina Begum, 22, a
resident of the Jarilangpada village of Teliamura sub-division in Khowai
district, and Ranjit Debnath from the UttorChebri village, also 22, eloped on
May 2 and got married. Their families were in not favour of their relationship.
She had also filed
an affidavit in court to convert to Hinduism and take a new name,
SonaliDebnath.
Sonali, whose
father Kayem Mia is a farmer, told reporters she had met Ranjit six years ago and
fell for each other. She said she had adopted the Hindu religion on her own.
When asked, Ranjit also said Sonali decided to become a Hindu by herself.
Meanwhile, the
leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)’s Tripura chapter Mahendrapal Singh
said Sonali married Ranjit and voluntarily adopted his religion. He said they
also made arrangements for their wedding at the Tripureshwari Radha Giridhari
Shiva Temple at Ghilatali in Kalyanpur Friday.
Earlier this month,
the VHP and Bajrang Dal organised an awareness camp on ‘love jihad’ at Maharaja
BirBikram (MBB) College and said the initiative was taken as part of a
nationwide awareness generation initiative on the subject.
Source: indianexpress.com
https://indianexpress.com/article/north-east-india/tripura/tripura-muslim-woman-marries-hindu-man-changes-religion-8657059/
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Ex-Scottish Leader,
Nicola Sturgeon, Issues Comment on Her Arrest
12 Jun, 2023
Former Scottish
first minister Nicola Sturgeon has denied any wrongdoing after being arrested
by police and questioned on Sunday. Sturgeon was released without charge, amid
a probe into alleged financial misconduct by the Scottish National Party (SNP).
“To find myself in
the situation I did when I am certain I have committed no offense is both a
shock and deeply distressing,” the politician said in a statement upon her
release.
Police confirmed on
Sunday evening that Sturgeon had been arrested at 10.09am, before being
questioned by detectives and released from custody at 5.24pm without charge,
“pending further investigation.” Authorities also said she was “a suspect in
connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the
Scottish National Party.”
The former leader,
who quit as first minister and Scottish National Party leader in April, said
she will take several days to “process this latest development,” but promised
“to be back in parliament soon where I will continue to represent my Glasgow
Southside constituents to the very best of my ability.”
Sunday’s arrest is
the third as part of Police Scotland’s ‘Operation Branchform’, an investigation
into claims that £600,000 ($754,000) in political donations from supporters
intended to be spent on a campaign to promote independence from the UK was
misused by the SNP.
Sturgeon’s husband,
Peter Murrell, a former chief executive of the SNP, was arrested in April.
Party treasurer Colin Beattie was also detained and questioned as part of the
enquiry. Both were released without charge.
“Innocence is not
just a presumption I am entitled to in law. I know beyond doubt that I am in
fact innocent of any wrongdoing,” Sturgeon insisted in her statement, adding
she could not go into detail “given the nature of this process.”
Source: rt.com
https://www.rt.com/news/577875-scotland-sturgeon-arrested-questioned/
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Pakistani women
playing key roles in Hajj mission
June 11, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan
has sent more than 40 women to work as part of its Hajj mission in Saudi
Arabia, many of them in leadership roles, a Religious Affairs Ministry official
said on Saturday.
Saudi authorities
have reinstated Pakistan’s pre-pandemic Hajj quota, allowing 179,210 people to
participate in this year’s pilgrimage, and removed the upper age limit of 65.
About 80,000 of the pilgrims will perform Hajj under a government scheme, with
the rest using private tours.
Pakistan’s
Religious Affairs Ministry said that more than 50,000 Pakistanis had arrived in
the Kingdom since the government launched special flights on May 21.
“Currently, over 40
women are working shoulder to shoulder with men in the Hajj mission in Makkah
and Madinah, and approximately 15 more are expected to arrive in the coming
days,” Mohammed Umer Butt, a ministry spokesperson, told Arab News.
“These women are
serving in various sections and some of them are even leading different
departments,” he said, adding that some female doctors and paramedics were
contributing to Pakistan’s Hajj medical mission.
Nadia Razzaq, the
head of information technology in Makkah, said women were playing crucial roles
within the Hajj mission.
“More than 40 women
have already arrived in Saudi Arabia to fulfill various responsibilities across
different sectors, such as food, accommodation and transportation,” she told
Arab News.
“Women are making
valuable contributions to every sector of the Hajj operations.”
Ayesha Ijaz, who is
responsible for monitoring the Hajj mission in Makkah, said her role involved
overseeing the arrangements made by private tour operators for pilgrims arriving
in Saudi Arabia.
“This includes
addressing their issues and ensuring the provision of the facilities promised
to them in Makkah, Madinah and other locations during the Hajj,” she said.
“Women staff also
hold crucial positions in the Hajj mission, which greatly contributes to our
smooth operations.”
Beenish Ashraf, who
heads up the call center at Makkah’s main control office, said her department
helped to resolve pilgrims’ complaints.
“We have employed
call agents who handle pilgrims’ calls round the clock,” she said.
“As soon as we
receive these calls, we enter the details into our system, notify the
respective sector commander and contact the relevant department to expedite the
resolution.”
Source: arabnews.com
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2319756/world
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Muslim Women
Delegation met DCP Dr Pravi Mundhe Zone 1 regarding increase Crime in South
Mumbai
June 11, 2023
A delegation
comprising of women from different NGO’s met with Zonal DCP Dr Pravi Mundhe and
presented a memorandum regarding the two dastardly murders taking place within
a span of a week. The delegation brought to the notice the increase in crimes
related to women.
There is a spike in
crime rate against women with each passing day, which is very very alarmimg. They
asked for stringent and timely precautionary safety measures to be taken for
the safety of women and children.
The DCP said Mumbai
is one of the safest cities for women. He assured precautionary measures from
his side and said it is necessary that NGO’s and other organisations also sensitise
women and children for their own safety. Usually such crimes are committed by
known persons.
The delegation
comprised of members from Aman Committee, MrsZakiya Farid Shaikh,Adv Farhana
Shah, Mrs Sakina Naeem Shaikh, Mrs Salma khan,Mrs Meena Solanki,MrsNeha Pawar
MrsVarsha Pawar among others and members from ladies wing Jamaate Islami
Hind,Mrs Mumtaz Nazir Shaikh,Mrs Fraida Akhtar,Mrs Shaheen Khan,Rashida Ansari
and Rubina Momin. Sandhya Bhagat from Gulmohar NGO was also present.
Zakiyafaridshaikh Sakina Naeem shaikh
Mumtaz apa Farhana
shah and others were participating of this Delegation.
Source: hellomumbainews.com
https://www.hellomumbainews.com/current-news/muslim-women-delegation-met-dcp-dr-pravi-mundhe-zone-1-regarding-increase-crime-in-south-mumbai/
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/nri-muslim-woman-zahara-religious-harmony/d/129976