Amina Wadud, an Islamic Reformist and the founding member of Sisters in Islam, has been the latest victim of Communal Politics in India. She was about to give a lecture on ‘Gender and Reform in Islam’ at the University of Madras yesterday. Â However Madras Police cancelled her lecture on Sunday night citing possible communal tensions amid protests by various Islamic Groups in Tamil Nadu.
Angry Amina tweeted on Monday morning from Kozhikode, “I have announced my intention to leave India for good as soon as I have completed some commitments in the region already scheduled”. Amina was about to board the flight to Chennai when she was informed about this development.
I have announced my intention to leave India for good as soon as I have completed some commitments in the region already scheduled.
— amina wadud (@aminawadud) July 29, 2013
Madras University officials too are angry over this decision of Police. According to PK Abdul Rahiman, head of the Centre for Islamic Studies, “This has set a wrong precedent of police interfering in university programmes. We’ve lost an opportunity to host an internationally renowned scholar”. Amina has a strong repute in the Academia and her books are part of the curriculam.
Yesterday late night, the Vice Chancellor of MAdras University got a MEssage from Police Officials saying “Police cannot allow this (the lecture) considering law and order (sic). Please take action to suspend / cancel the programme.”
Police further says that that an earlier speech by Wadud in Karur in Tamil Nadu had created problems. Surprisingly Amina Wadud has never been to Tamil Nadu in past and according to her this was her first visit. Recently, Amina had already spoken at Jamila Milia Islamia, but no law & order problem occurred there. She has also spoken at various locations in Andhra Pradesh and Kerala in past.
Another Police Officer was reported saying that the decision was taken at higher level of the Government, so they cannot either justify or oppose it.
Many people equate this to the ban on Taslima Nasreen who is facing similar situations due to her books. However Sixty year old Amina is an Internationally acclaimed Scholar.
Amina Wadud was born September 25, 1952) in an Afro-American Family and is known for her progressive focus on Qur’an exegesis (interpretation). As an Islamic feminist, she has addressed mixed-sex congregations, giving a sermon in South Africa in 1994, and leading Friday prayers in the United States in 2005.
On Friday 18 March 2005, Wadud acted as imam for a congregation of about 60 women and 40 men seated together, without any gender separation. Due to her this act she was the target of various fundamentalists and received concurrent death threats. Al-Qaradawi berated her actions on Al-Jazeera, calling it un-Islamic and heretical.