IMPHAL: When she was aged 16 years, the parents of ‘gutsy’ Najima Bibi were marrying her off to a ‘stranger’ against her wishes and so, she eloped with a man she had met only twice before.
Fast forward to today, such is her guts that she is going ahead with her plan to contest the Manipur Assembly elections despite being threatened by Muslim clerics to withdraw nomination or lose space for the burial of her body.
The 44-year-old is the State’s first Muslim woman to contest an election. She has been fielded by People’s Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) from Wabagai constituency in Imphal Valley. PRJA was floated by iconic activist Irom Sharmila last year after she had ended her epic hunger strike.
Without citing any reason, three clerics in Najima’s village, Santhel, had publicly announced last month that she would not get space for “kabar” (burial). They also threatened locals to not talk to her. The supporters of Najima alleged the clerics were worried about losing their “bread and butter”. All three of them are said to be close aides of sitting MLA, Md Fajur Rahim, and they fear Najima could go on to win the election.
Najima and her party took up the issue of threat with Governor Najma Heptulla but so far no case has been registered against the trio. Such obstacles are, however, not new to Najima, who has grown up fighting the odds against her. As a child, she fought her way to ride a bicycle.
“The locals in my village made fun of me when I started learning to ride a bicycle. This is the kind of struggle Muslim women are faced with in Manipur. It is not about women’s issues or fighting patriarchy to its face. The struggle begins with things as insignificant as riding a bicycle,” Najima told Express.
She was the only girl in her class to complete her 10th standard amid taunts and harassment at school. The marriage that followed ended in divorce within six months. It was then that she came up with “Cheng Marup” – an economic independence programme. Under this, every woman in the group would take out a handful of rice from the quantity to be cooked at home.
“These were collected and kept in my house, and twice a month, whoever’s turn came would get the entire rice which she sold off to earn some money. But some people looked at me with suspicion as I was divorced and our savings were considered theft,” Najima said.
Her effort to ensure women do not face harassment, abandonment and violence ruffled the feathers of the clerics who first banned all women self-help groups in the village on religious grounds and later, issued a “fatwa” asking villagers to boycott her family. But she has remained unfazed till date as she is going about her work.
“I am not against the clerics. They are an important part of Islam and I respect that. I just want to help the women who are in distress; Islam provides for it,” Najma said explaining her work.
She is very popular among women in the constituency for fighting for their cause. Wherever she goes, she is greeted by dozens and this despite her low-key campaign. There are not many banners and posters of hers and her party hung around in the constituency.
“Don’t be scared of the threats (from clerics). Use your conscience and vote for the candidate who, you believe, can deliver,” Najima told people at rally.
Asked why she joined politics, she said she was inspired by Sharmila and her decision to take her fight forward through the formation of PRJA.
“I decided to stand alongside her as I thought that was the best way to expand the scope of my work. I have policies and vision for education and women's issues. I want to fight against corruption and Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act,” she said.
In the course of her fight, she had got married for the second time and the couple has five children, including two sons.