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  • Title: Socio-economic status of Muslim women.
    Author: Bhatty Z.
    Journal: Indian J Soc Sci; 1994; 7(3-4):335-40. PubMed ID: 12347368.
    Abstract:
    The Indian sociological literature neglects the role of women in social relationships within the family system, their status in society, and the interactions between Indian minorities and the majority community. Indian institutions and cultural norms have perpetuated the role of Indian women as subservient. Orthodox Muslims uphold the low position of women as a symbol of cultural identity. Indian Muslims have tried to prevent conversion and integration of other views, but have failed to eliminate the Hindu influence on the general pattern of living, the system of social stratification, and customs and attitudes regarding women. Muslims hold conformist ideals and beliefs from the Quran and the Hadis. Although Indian women live under the Hindu Code Bill that gives equal rights to women, most Muslim women are restricted under the Muslim Personal Law. Muslims who are ignorant of the Quran are unaware of the allowances in the Shariat for social adjustment, change, and accommodation. In fact, Indian Muslim communities follow four different Shariats: the Hanafi, the Shaafi, the Hambali, and the Maliki. Islamic scholars state that the Shariat is not unchangeable. There is also disparity between the actual practice of polygamy and the Quran's strict provision that all wives must be treated equally. Islamic practices have been manipulated to suit male interests. Indian Muslims are either Ashrafs or nonAshrafs. Ashrafs are the upper social class and are made up of the Sayyads, the Sheikhs, the Mughals, and the Pathans, in descending order of hierarchy. There are differences in the treatment of women within this stratification. For instance, many nonAshraf women do not observe purdah, but the tendency among the Ashraf is to impose purdah.
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