Khuda ke liye?

And so, it drives me insane with antagonism when I read about women hell-bent on importing medieval times into our contemporary world.

Although she lives in Srinagar and enjoys all the perks of an Indian citizenship, her loyalties lie firmly with Pakistan (she believes Kashmir ought to be a part of the terrorist nation). An Islamic hardliner, 45 year old Asiya Andrabi is the very embodiment of the home-grown-terrorist-variety that threatens to obliterate entire nations.

She was 19 years old when she embarked on her first burqa excursion. The Moslem shopkeeper at the time mentioned that she was far too young to follow the diktat which he personally considered tedious and unimportant.

“Islam has instructed women to cover themselves completely,” says a very-cloaked Andrabi sitting in her living room on a sultry summer afternoon. She is the president of a separatist organisation she founded way back in the 1980’s called Dukhtaran-e-Millat (Daughters of the Faith) which has been identified by the Indian authorities as an underground terrorist outfit and a threat to national security and thus banned under the Prevention of Terrorism Act since 2002. Today, this terrorist outfit enjoys a membership of over 200 women aged 18-90 year olds – each member carries with her a dagger that they’re instructed to use at their discretion against the Indian army/security forces.

“What has morality got to do with a country’s security?” asks a visibly insolent Asiya when she and a few other crows of her kind decided to spray paint visible body parts of Muslim women in the valley who weren’t veiled. (This insipid rebellion is an unimaginative example of unabashed plageurism from the UAE where many years ago, the religious police spray painted the legs to two BA stewardesses shopping in the souk - years before the company was able to procure and construct their own secluded enclosure for their traumatised executives)

Andrabi’s tryst with dementia started when her father denied her the freedom to study further since according to him, “the atmosphere in India wasn’t right”. As a result, she would closet herself in his study where she stumbled upon a book written by a woman convert to Islam called ‘Khwateen ke dilon ki baatein’ (Confessions of Female Revolutionaries).

The book preached about the merits of the various tenets of Islam that fired Asiya’s imagination. So convinced was she of its content that she decided to rebuke her father for not shedding light onto the glorious teachings of M. Asiya is now committed to restoring life in the valley (and other parts of the country) to the Golden era of Islam prevalent 1400 years before now for she believes that women truly enjoyed dignity and respect in that period.

As is predictable, Asiya married a Mujahid (her husband is a Mujahideen for another terrorist outfit, the Jamait-ul-Mujahideen, who was also sentenced for life in prison). Asiya has also been imprisoned and today, vows to step up the rigour to achieve her own place in infamy. She proclaims quite proudly that she would love for her husband to marry again.

Content with her pre-historic beliefs, she often spends her time brandishing her monogrammed dagger encased in an ornate covering.

Welcome to progress, ladies and Gentleman.

How does wearing an oppressive garment that makes life difficult for a majority of the women following this idiosyncrasy, restore dignity to women? What can I possibly achieve by wearing a shroud that makes me swelter in a world where global warming isn’t a concept but reality? How can I differentiate between women and terrorists or both when they’re adept at donning this niqab whilst conducting radical attacks on innocent civilians in their bid to establish Mohammed’s vision of Jannat? How dare you dictate what I’m supposed to wear in my own country? How does this fuckwit explain indescribable rapes of veiled women in Mohammed’s very own land of bigots we know as Mecca?

Hundreds of women interviewed by journalists have mentioned on more occasions than one about following every fashion trend prevalent in the West underneath their derivative and ugly shrouds – even if that means parading in sexy lingerie or less. Images of headless burqa-clad-sluts enjoying a grope or worse are strewn over the internet clearly indicating the oppression felt by a people who are as normally lascivious as the rest of the world but pretend otherwise.

The highest number of surgeries conducted to restore the hymen of unmarried women is recorded in the United Arab Emirates – the seat of this duplicitous religion. Underground parties with naked women (locals and foreigners), drugs and alcohol in the basements of wealthy Arab’s involving even the sanctimonious Quazi’s are common knowledge. Fly-by-night-nikkah ceremonies to satiate lustful cravings of sex obsessed followers of the faith are not only common practice but encouraged by the polity.

When a woman is kicked and beaten and rebuked for not being able to cook or clean or provide fornication for her master when demanded of her, how does the shroud help mitigate this?

Debating the abominable fashion diktats of any religion seems like a waste of time. But when the followers of this redundant faith impress upon others the merits of their convoluted philosophy, it is time to declare an un-relentless war against those who oppose freedom of thought or expression.

~ by alternativefrock on April 25, 2008.