Fresh from the success of having entered the core worship areas of Shani Shingnapur and Mahalakshmi temple at Kolhapur, Bhumata Rangranai Brigade (BRB) convenor Trupti Desai on Wednesday joined a campaign launched by several organisation and prominent personalities to demand entry inside the sanctorum sanctorum of iconic Haji Ali at Worli in south Mumbai.
Having come under the forum named “Haji Ali Sabke liye”, social activist Javed Anand and filmmaker Saeed Mirza had invited Desai — a crusader against gender bias at temples — to be a part of the campaign seeking entry to women inside the core worship area of the Haji Ali temple.
There was considerable drama at the beginning of the inaugural press conference of the “Haji Ali Sabke liye” forum organised at the Mumbai Marathi Patrakar Sangh in south Mumbai.
A small group, led by one Javed lodiya who claimed to be a “journalist” and “human rights activist”, made his presence felt at the Press conference, by asserting that “Sharia does not allow entry of women inside dargah”.
Noted Islamic scholar Dr Zeenat Shaukat Ali said that lodiya’s statement was misinterpretation of Sharia. The organisers asked lodiya to leave the place.
“Please leave. You can also call a press conference and make your point rather than disrupting our press conference,” Feroze Mithiborwala said. Mithiborwaka is one of the activists behind the formation of “Haji Ali Sabke liye” forum.
Interacting with the media, Desai said that on April 28, the forum would stage a dharna at Haji Ali seeking entry to women inside the sanctum sanctorum of the famous dargha.
“Before the dharna, we also intend to hold talks with the office bearers of the Haji Ali trust. We hope that the trust will invite us for talks,” Desai said.
Activist Javed Anand said: “We are of the firm view that women’s entry in a dargah is not a religious issue but something to do with custom and tradition. In fact, till 2011, there was no restriction on women to enter the core worship area at Haji Ali dargah. What is significant is that some of the Haji Ali dargah’s trustees are also trustees of the Makhdoom Baba dargah at Mahim where even today there is not restriction on women”.