Your story

Beat them up, spit on them

Back
Extracts from the Nathwani Commission Report●January 02, 2008

Various methods are used to harass and persecute the socially boycotted persons. One of the most commonly used is attack on residence, shops or other work establishments, physical attack on persons concerned as also the close members of their families if they have not broken away from them. Beating and spitting are two such methods.

Amongst others are forcible expulsion from attendance and prayers at Masjids, graveyards, religious ceremonies associated with birth, marriages, deaths, harassing sick members of the family of the person under Baraat, removal from employment if the employer is a Bohra are commonly resorted to.

Another very obnoxious method is separation of wife from husband, brother from brother, sister and all close relatives. We have received several instances of forced break up of marriages. Mental torture and cruelty inflicted can only be imagined when sons and daughters have been prevented from meeting their parents on their death bed or from performing ceremonies associated with burial.

Such examples are common and found in Bombay, Ahmedabad, Udaipur, Godhra to mention only a few in India from various towns also of East African countries and Pakistan. Some of the respondents have stated that private armies of men and of women are maintained by the priestly class for harassment, assault and persecution of the reformers and also for the purposes of spying on their activities.

Medical practitioners are boycotted if in the course of their duties they render service or treat any reformers. Dr. Cutlerywala has suffered much for helping the sick. Children also have not been spared. Bohra students are organised to beat them up, spit on them and do everything to make life miserable for little children in school.

Mohmedali Hasanali aged 77 years, states from Nairobi that in 1968 he was thrown out of Masjid during the presence of Sayedna. He was not allowed to participate in the burial of his wife who died on 6-4-1973 in Mombasa. He was prevented from attending the marriage of his daughter and his son in Mombasa. When his sons visited Africa, they were forcibly prevented from meeting the father. As if all this is not enough, he was actually assaulted by the orthodox.

When he visited India in 1976 after 23 years, the social boycott followed him because Sayedna's agent in Nairobi sent a telegram. During his absence, shop in Mombasa was taken away from his son and he is not allowed the use of his property which is being sought to be taken away as Sayedna is said to be the owner.

(There were mass assaults in Galiakot and Moidpura Masjid in Udaipur, Women and Children were also assaulted. This created strong resentment and Udaipur has become a very good stronghold of reformists. Their relatives in Bombay and other places are made to suffer for their relationships).

The best illustration of persecution inflicted and suffered is of Mohmedhussain Gulamabbas Udaipurwala, an active worker of Bombay youth association. His son aged 8 years was expelled from Saifi High School and when readmitted because of government order was so badly treated by other children of the school under instructions from their elders that with great difficulty he had to be admitted to another school. His wife was removed from the Masjid during Mohrum Vaez.

As if this was not enough, he was asked to vacate the residential flat where he lives. On his continuing there, deliberate damage is caused to the residence. Life really became dangerous for him. Besides abusing and spitting on him and his family members, on 23-8-1978 his neighbours seriously injured him by beating him with an iron rod on his head.

A.A. Udaipuri, an advocate who had taken the oath of allegiance (misaaq) again in Bombay in 1973 purchased a flat in Bombay constructed by the orthodox supporters of Sayedna but the religious hierarchy were Leasors of the plot. He and some others were not given their title deeds. So they lodged a criminal complaint in the additional chief metropolitan magistrate court in Bombay. Only then they learnt that the original documents of the title deeds were false and fabricated. Thereafter persecution followed and he and his family were under Baraat and the social boycott is very intense against him.

Nomanbhai Contractor, a Bombay reformist leader, visited Godhra, his native place with his family on 12-6-1977. He visited a fellow reformist Pawagadhwala and a large crowd of Bohras surrounded the latter's house. Zainuddin was in a cinema house when he received a phone call from his house and he informed the police to protect the reformist leader and his host. Sayedna's men knew it and his house was surrounded and stoned. Contractor's motor car was totally burnt. Pawagadhwala of Godhra has also been subjected to personal humiliation and assault. His sister in law was attacked and she suffered injury because she was in his house.

We can multiply instances but those given above would do. Among those who had suffered most are Abidali Jafarbhai Gulguliwala of Dahod, Alihussain Tayyebbhai Cyclewala, Hussain Kurbanhussain Sanchawala. Sanchawala had an additional tale of persecution to tell which in its enormity exceeds anything said here.

His father had started in 1935 Anjumane Mohmedi in cooperation with seven other reformists of Dahod in Gujarat. He was conducting night classes for old and young and tailoring class for giving employment to the poor. All thses were forced to be closed down because of social boycott and persecution. Even the school which they started in Surat could not run. One serious allegation by Sanchawala is that from 47th Dai upto 50th Dai the priestly class was in debt because it used to spend for the welfare of the community and the community used to pay their debt. After 51st Dai, Dai's family has become one of the richest families in the world by exploiting the community ruthlessly.

Mohmedbhai Shamshuddin Cutpiecewala of Surat had given oral evidence in the criminal court at Surat 50 years ago against forcible signatures for exemption for the operation of the Wakf Act 1923. He was beaten up and he has been socially boycotted since then. Tayyabbhai M. Bolbol, Zakiruddin Kadarbhai Roker and Taherbhai Abdul Gafur Kinkhabwala aged 82 years, have been under Baraat since the Chandabhai Galla case. Besides ruining their business they had the other horrible experience of having dirt and human excreta thrown on their person.

Teherali Abdulali Kapadia of Dhoraji Gujrat has been suffering the boycott for a number of years. The entire family with the aged father and women members is put to great harassment. When his infant daughter died, he was refused burial in the Bohra graveyard. But the police and other Muslim and non-Muslim friends helped him.

Moiz Salebhai Mediwala of Jamnagar Taiyabi Zamindar of Ahmedabad and several others have recounted horrible tales of persecution of men, women and innocent children.

Sheikh Ahmedali Qurban Hussain Rajnagarwala suffered most because of the forced divorces of his two daughters Shahre Banu and Nafisa. One of his daughters was divorced when she was pregnant and the shock of divorce made her lose her child. Mehfuza Taj of Udaipur had her marriage broken up in 1975 and brother's wife deserted him because they both are reformists. The Udaipur Youth Association also presented a memorandum listing 39 couples who were forced to divorce. Udaipur Jamat has also given such a list. From other places in India and abroad we have received many complaints of forced divorces.

Mrs. Fatimabai Saddiqali Tinwala aged 50 years from Udaipur states that because her family was with the reformist group, her son's wife from orthodox family deserted him and sent to them their six year old crippled girl. She was continuously crying for her mother. When they informed them their reply was "let her die"( bala jaye) and ultimately despite medical treatment she died. Before her death they informed her to visit their daughter. When she cane with her brother she had already expired. They assaulted them and false complaint was made that they had poisoned the girl. After post-mortem they were declared innocent.

Mulla Saleh Mohamad Avdul Hussain Salam from Baroda states that he was under social boycott. His younger son's wife went to her father at Indore. Her father was threatened with social boycott and was asked not to send her daughter back to Baroda. Hid elder son's wife has expired. No one is ready to marry him due to threat of social boycott.

Back