Woman Haj officer now the pride of community

Last week, this newspaper reported about the misgivings in a section of the Muslim community about the appointment of a woman as a senior official in the Central Haj Committee.

But the opposition from one group has led to an upsurge of support for the officer, Roohi Khan, from other community groups who are keen to present her as an example for Muslim girls to emulate.

Several groups have invited Khan to speak to community members, especially girls. Last week, she spoke at a function organised by the groups Association of Muslim Professionals and Urdu Markaz. On July 5, she is scheduled to speak at Burhani College, Mazgaon. Another function is planned between July 10 and 15 at the Saboo Siddik Hall.

Khan, who is from the Madhya Pradesh state administrative cadre, is the first woman to occupy the post of deputy chief executive officer ever since the post was created some time ago.

The group which opposed her appointment — the Raza Academy — was upset by the presence of a woman officer in a place that co-ordinates the Haj pilgrimage from India.

Though Khan is the first woman officer there, the Haj organisation has a history of being led by women, even in pre-independence days. The present chairperson of the Central Haj Committee is Congress politician Mohsina Kidwai and as far back as 1939-40, it was led by a woman - Khadija Shuffi.

Though Khan has not given interviews to newspapers, she  reportedly told the groups which met her that her religion permitted her to take up public office. She has also said that many women were influential figures in the early days of Islam.

At the meeting at Urdu Markaz, Khan and Farah Naqvi, a member of the National Advisory Council, spoke about issues affecting Muslims. The meeting was attended by academicians and members of no-profit groups.

Amir Idrissi of the Association of Muslim Professionals said, "We wanted to create a platform where influential Muslim women can speak to members of the community." Others want Khan to speak to Muslim girl students. “We are planning to get students from various schools and colleges to meet and speak to her,” said M Khalid of Milli Council.

Farid Batatawala of Muslim Front and a member of the Memon community said, "Though girls in our community are relatively well-educated, we want her to talk to them. The Memon Jamaat is planning a function with the officer in the last week of July."

But why should only a government officer be projected as a role model when educational and employment opportunities now offer a wider range of choices, both for men and women? "We are primarily promoting the cause of education among women and she is an example of what can be achieved with an education. If any group wants its future generation to do well, it is imperative that the women are educated. If women are educated, the children too will get the encouragement they need to pursue education," said Batatawala.