Islam and Gender: Religious Debates in Contemporary India

  • Aarushi Utpal Dey
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  • Aarushi Utpal Dey

    Student at Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad, India

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Abstract

A dynamic multicultural society, contemporary India is largely pluralistic in the domain of personal religious laws. With India being a cultural hub, it is only natural that a lot of beliefs and practices, even in modern India, owe their allegiance to religion and the concept of divinity. Keeping this in mind and to unite the people as one during the post-colonial time, the framers of our Constitution let the citizens continue following their personal religious laws. “Though personal religious laws allow for inclusiveness in religion, the history of these laws in India shows that they have been used selectively as a tool of governance and often to the disadvantage of women.” Lack of clarity and flawed understanding of the concept of inclusion over time, as enshrined by the Quran, has become a topic of controversy and increasing misconception that the religion somehow advocates gender in-equality. Though the majority share of accusations about Islamic practices in family law revolves primarily around the institution of family, marital issues, adoption, and inheritance, likewise, the arena of criminal law too considers a testimony by a Muslim woman debatable. It is these fundamental practices of Islam that have been corrupted over the years, which has led to the formation of negative perspectives and creating a sense of divide amongst the Non-Muslims. To address this very issue of gender disputes, the key areas of discussion that form the crux of this paper is the identification, and subsequent analysis of the said problems in the Muslim Personal Laws followed in India from the perspective of the aggrieved. Moreover, the paper additionally also aims to suggest reformative ways for the ideal address of problems at hand.

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Research Paper

Information

International Journal of Law Management and Humanities, Volume 4, Issue 4, Page 3927 - 3942

DOI: https://doij.org/10.10000/IJLMH.111817

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