The Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan has written to the Prime Minister seeking his intervention for reforms in Muslim Personal Law.
The organisation, which has over 70,000 members in 13 states, is working to end the discrimination against Muslim women that is built into the existing personal law.
Speaking out on the occasion of Constitution Day, Zakia Soman, co-founder of the Andolan, told the Times of India, "Gender justice is the principle of our Constitution. With our letter to the prime minister, we want to get the concerns of Muslim women registered with the government of India."
"We have prepared a draft that reflects the aspirations and demands of Muslim women. Accepting its provisions will help Muslim women lead a life of dignity," she added.
A Supreme Court bench has already instructed the National Legal Services Authority of India to examine whether the discrimination suffered by Muslim women is a violation of their fundamental rights, guaranteed by the Constitution under Articles 14, 15 and 21.
The proposals made by the Andolan include increasing the minimum age of marriage of girls to 18 and men to 21, making oral unilateral divorce illegal, and making polygamy illegal.
In the letter to the PM, the women cite a poll conducted by them of 4710 Muslim women in 10 states. Over 90% of the women polled wanted a ban on oral unilateral divorce and polygamy.
The organisation wants the Shariat Application Act and the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act to be amended. They have also suggested that the government could come out with a fresh enactment of Muslim Personal Law.
The Andolan released a draft Muslim Family Law after consulations with a large number of Muslim women, lawyers and religious scholars. The draft is consistent with both Quranic tenets and the Indian constitution.
