Progressive Dawoodi Bohras

In February 1973 Sayedna sent his son Qaid Jauhar to Udaipur. He met a number of members of the community. He said that he was dissolving Anjumane Najmi in order to form a new committee.

The members thereupon told him that if a new committee is to be formed, it must be democratically elected. He declined to do so and on 23rd February he formed a new committee consisting of his supporters.

The community did not like the nominated members and offered Satyagrah for expressing their protest against such nomination. Sataygrahis were then physically attacked and beaten. On 25th February the government intervened and the then District Magistrate and the Superintendent of Police told Qaid Jauhar that the Udaipur Bohras were opposed to the nominated members. They also advised him to cancel their nomination and constitute a committee by election. The Syedna's son reluctantly canceled the appointments but did not agree to hold fresh election for the committee.

In order to oppose the dictatorial tendency of the Sayedna and to oppose the committee which was imposed upon the community, the reformists announced that a committee should be elected by the community and made a statement to that effect. But the Sayedna and the priestly class boycotted the election and issued commands to their followers not to participate in the election. The election was actually opposed by them and they said that they have no faith in the elections and that the election would be prejudicial to the tenets of their religion.

Elections were held in 7-12-1975. Two days before the election the Amil Sheikh Sharafali sent a telegram to one M.A. Nazia residing at Basti Ramjiki Badi, Udaipur. It makes very interesting reading. The witness has produced a photocopy of the said telegram. The whole of it is set out below:

As per our religious tenets all managing committees are nominated, appointed, constituted by Dai-Ul-Mutlaq. His Holiness Sayedna under his authority permits no elections. No elections are so held or were ever held in Bohra community. So, pray, avoid hurting our religious feelings and beliefs by having an illegible (sic) elections contrary to our religious feelings, practice and precepts.

Acts done as mentioned in the "Jai Rajasthan" daily dated 3rd December Page 1 col. 6 middle portion under the caption "Ad hoc committees for Bohras Managing Committee" are illegal unauthorized and contrary to our religion and its tenets etc. and are being done/published with the sole object of promoting disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred and ill-will amongst the members of Bohra community with the intention of outraging our religious beliefs and to arouse feelings of disrespect and hatred for our spiritual head.

- Sheikh Sharafali.

(The reference in this telegram to "Jai Rajasthan" of 3rd December is a reference to the announcement of election which was published in that newspaper).

In support of the fact that elections were held on 7th December the witness has also produced the newspaper cutting of "Jai Rajasthan" of 8-12-1975.

Charity prohibited

The witness has further stated that the Sayedna ordered dissolution of one Anjuman-i- Lukmani which provided for the necessary help at the time of burial. In order to harass the community directives were however given to dissolve this organization.

The witness has given an instance of one Saifi Dispensary and Maternity Home. It was established many years back by late Shri Tayebali, who was a high judicial dignitary in one of the erstwhile large princely state in the Rajasthan area. The witness said that the Sayedna insisted upon the said dispensary and maternity home being dedicated to himself by a Wakf trust. The founder refused to do so and thereupon Sayedna refused to give permission for its establishment. The consequence is that the same is still languishing and it has not been of any use to any one. (Recently progressive Bohras took over the property and are running it successfully - with all community members (progressive and orthodox) and even non-Bohras taking advantage of the facility).

There is also an instance of one Buharnia Library which contains books on literature, history and on different other subjects. It was established many years back. It was being used by members of this community. It is a public library but only because it is managed by a person who had been a sponsor of the Bohra Youth, directives were given that it should be closed down. When the management refused to do so, directive was issued prohibiting members of the Bohra community from availing of it. Now no orthodox member visits it while all the general public make full use of it.

The witness has also quoted instance of Saif Imdadi, which for the last several years has been giving free books etc. to the students of the primary and higher secondary schools and gives scholarships to those who want to pursue further studies, it also awards gold and silver medals, shields and other awards for the encouragement of the students. As a result several young men and women have been educated among whom are doctors and engineers.

The institution is run with the help of donations and membership fees. Sayedna, according to the witness, is opposing all such institutions because he thinks that his authority will not work in a society of educated persons. For this reason when the Sayedna came to Udaipur in 1966, he directed that the donations which were promised by one Advocate Shri Mohammed Hussain Paliwala (who was at that time living in Africa) should not be accepted and that if any donation had already been received from him, it should be paid back.

The reason for doing so was shown to be that Mohammed Hussain's activities were prejudicial to Daawat and that he was an enemy of the Dai. A cable to this effect was sent to him. Mohammed Hussain was giving large donations to the committee every year. At that time the witness was the acting secretary of the committee. There was a shadow of social boycott on all persons at that time. Through orthodox followers of the Sayedna the institution has been boycotted and every effort has been made to make it ineffective. Even the supporters of the institution who are residing in Bombay have been directed to be excommunicated and the institution was facing financial disaster. But the committee has been again able to organize activities with the help of Bohra Youth and Bohra Jamat.

Another instance given by the witness is very eloquent. The reformist Bohras started the practice of arranging one function every year with the object of creating harmony and goodwill between different communities. They selected Eid to be such an occasion. This step was heartily welcomed by members of the public and Hindus and Muslims participated in it in thousands. This was concretisation of the principle of secularism adopted by our country. Sayedna expressed his displeasure at such functions and has directed his orthodox followers not to take part in them.

One witness Pavaghadhawala of Godhra has given instance of one institution, a club called "Friends' Circle" which was helping in the education of students. Permission of Sayedna was not obtained for starting this circle and therefore it was directed to be disbanded in the name of religion.

Smt. Mehfuza Sadikali Sunwarwala of Bombay has in her reply to the questionnaire referred to four institutions which has to be closed down only on the ground that they were established without the permission of Sayedna. They are :

The institutions 1, 2 and 4 above had to be closed down and No. 3 was taken over by the Sayedna by using coercive power as a religious head.

One respondent to the questionnaire who would not like to have his name mentioned had given several instances of the Sayedna's interference. He has said that leaders of the Jamat in Amreli were forced to agree to transfer all properties in Amreli which were meant for the welfare of the community to the Sayedna in his capacity as religious head.

In Visavadar in Junagadh district a donor offered big amount for construction of a mosque. When he asked the Raza of the Sayedna, he was asked to donate equal amount for the Roza Tahera in the memory of late Sayedna Taher Saifuddin predecessor and father of the present Sayedna. The result was the amount which was intended to be donated for the mosque had to be reduced.

In Rajkot they organized a Maiyyat Committee (Burial committee) for facilitating burial with permission. When the Amil found that out of 12 members two members belonged the reformist group, he directed the institution to remove them. The members of the committee were shocked at this kind of attitude and they, therefore, preferred to dissolve the committee. On account of the demand from the people, it was again started with the same object.

One Inayat Hussain Mulla Yahyabhai, formerly residing in Kapadvanj, of Malegaon, in his reply to the questionnaire has stated that he had taken the initiative to start a free hospital and a free library for the community by establishing Dawoodi Bohra Helping Society . It was inaugurated by the Collector of the District. But since he had not secured permission of the high priest for doing so, all Bohras were forced to boycott him and so his family including his mother and sister were socially boycotted and were harassed so much that they had to leave Kapadvanj. His mother was asked by the Amil to declare that she had cut off all her relations with her husband.

One Yunus K.M. Baluwala appeared as a witness before us. He said among other things that in Godhra in 1948 there was a large scale communal riot and houses of the members of the Bohra community were set ablaze. The Government constructed a number of huts for the refugees. One Ibrahim Maliwala came from Karachi in 1977 and he wanted to donate a large amount for building many more cottages. His donation was to be of Rs. 30 lakhs.

But Syedna's permission was necessary for the same. When the permission of Sayedna was sought, the latter insisted the donation to be given to him so that he could construct those cottages and the construction would be in his name. The donor was disgusted with this kind of attitude even for a humane activity of housing the homeless and he, therefore, withdrew the offer and a number of persons who could have been benefited by this activity were deprived of the benefit only because the Sayedna wanted credit for himself and wanted to have domination over the property.

The victims of the riot are still residing in the temporary huts built by the Government. Mrs Zubeda Zainuddin Vali of Godhra has started an institution called Fatima Mahila Mandal but since it was started without the permission and since she and her husband were socially boycotted the institution had to be closed down.

It is obvious that Raza for establishing institutions is insisted upon to gain control over them. Even the illustrative cases which we have discussed above go to show that the weapon of social boycott is wielded in a ruthless manner by the priestly class. The object of such social boycott is to make the life of a dissenter miserable and intolerable so that neither he nor anyone else would ever think of dissenting or disobeying the orders of the Sayedna or his Amils.

The facts as narrated above in this chapter and which we have discussed in later chapter are tales of horror and remind us of the practices of the medieval Roman Catholic Church. We have no doubt that these acts are being committed not only in this country but in other countries as well. The fact that Baraat is being practised and persons are persecuted by merely calling them dissenters, has now been accepted by the permanent commission of Enquiry, Government of Tanzania. We have before us a photocopy of a letter dated 6th January, 1979 addressed by the chairman of the permanent Enquiry Commission to one Sheikh Fadaali H Moayyadi, Moiz S. Khambhali (chairman) and Murtaza A. Raja (Secretary) of the Dawoodi Bohras Jamat Corporation, Dar-Es Salaam. The letter is reproduced below:-

"It has been observed that Tanzanian Citizens who are members of the Bohra Community are being socially boycotted, are called dissidents and are being socially boycotted, are called dissidents and are thrown out of the mosques. Such reports have been received by several offices in the country and investigations into this state of affairs have been completed and found that the act of calling some members of the society as dissidents is quite against the peace and policy of the country and hence intolerable.

"Citizens of the country should not be embarrassed by any person who does not abide with the country's policy. From now onwards these things should not be entertained. Severe measures will be taken against any person who entertains act of calling citizens as dissidents or practices "Baraat" and freedom of choice must be allowed.

"Take note that in order to eliminate tension arising from lack of election, a fair election will take place in which all adults will participate."

Sd/-Illegible
Chairman
Permanent Commission of Enquiry
c.c. Admin Jariwalla,
P.O.Box 20125
Dar es Salaam

This letter is very eloquent. A permanent commission of enquiry, a government agency, having powers to investigate into such complaints, have found that in Tanzania also the same pattern is followed by the leaders of the Bohra Jamat to throw out Dawoodi Bohras out of the mosques. Attempts are made to persecute them. This is quite in keeping with the pattern of behavior followed in India by the High Priest and his Amils. The letter shown that the Government of Tanzania is alive to this problem and its agency has given a warning to the priestly class not to indulge in such practices.

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