In the heart of Hyderabad, a disturbing practice known as ‘Arab Nikaah’ unfolds, preying on vulnerable families and exploiting the innocence of minor girls. This harrowing narrative, gleaned from conversations with police sources and community insiders, exposes a sinister modus operandi that thrives under the veneer of Islamic rules of marriage.

The deceptive dance of exploitation

A cohort of dalals, or touts, strategically targets impoverished families with multiple minor daughters. Crafty narratives promise a brighter future through marriages with wealthy sheikhs, often labelling these unions as ‘short-term marriages of convenience’ in exchange for financial gain. Once trapped by the illusion, families pressure their young daughters into these precarious arrangements. 

Touts employ manipulative tactics, producing falsified documents to present the girls as adults. Signatures are extracted on both nikhanama and talaknama at the time of the marriage. The orchestrated deal involves sheikhs flying into the country, residing in local hotels, and finalising the agreement. A compliant qazi is then located, and the marriage is solemnised, culminating in the Sheikh spending brief moments with the minor girl before divorcing her and departing. 

The Meher that the Sheikh gives the bride is divided among the touts and the qazi primarily before handing out a small share to the parents/mother. It can be as little as 20,000 rupees if the meher is 1 lakh. The reason given to convince these mothers is that the girl will send them money regularly once she goes abroad. 

The girl is divorced within 15 days of marriage, stating “promiscuous” girl as the reason since it is easy to blame the woman/girl always. 

Shockingly, within the Hyderabadi Muslim community, few are willing to speak about this child bride bazaar, let alone acknowledge it as a commonplace occurrence. Despite a growing vigilance against such practices, Arab Nikaahs persist, showing a reluctance to fade away entirely. Common threads in these narratives include illiteracy, religious beliefs, and a desperation to escape poverty, all exacerbated by the dubious role of the Qazis. 

Families complicit in marrying off their minor girls often vanish to avoid detection, leaving behind shattered lives and unanswered questions. Among a section of Muslims, the belief that attaining puberty is sufficient for marriage persists, disregarding the legal age of 18. In some quarters, families see nothing wrong in marrying minor girls to elderly Arab sheikhs, perpetuating a disturbing acceptance of this exploitative practice.

Predatory rich Arabs

The perpetrators behind these crimes are often wealthy, middle-aged/ageing Arabs who exploit the sanctioned provision allowing a Muslim man to have up to four wives at a time. Nowadays, it is claimed that they come to Bharat for medical treatment, get the girls’ photos or choose them in person, get married, enjoy as they wish, and leave the country for theirs.

Jameela Nishat, who runs the Shaheen Foundation, has rescued nearly 2000 girls from such sham marriages, which she calls “legalised prostitution. ” These marriages were rampant even during the pandemic. Jameela states that the ageing Sheikhs marry these virgin minors in the “belief” that they will grow younger if they have sex with them. 

Exploitation of the poor families

Impoverished Muslim parents, enticed by the promise of a better future, increasingly push their daughters into this exploitative practice under the convenient respectability of an Islamic marriage. Arabs, in collusion with greedy Qazis, exploit these vulnerable girls in short-term marriages, sometimes lasting only a night. Families unable to meet dowry demands become the first prey of old Arab grooms, who not only grant the sanctity of marriage but also offer financial incentives.

Silent suffering of the minor girls

The stories narrated by social worker Jameela Nishat through her organisation Shaheen bring harrowing tales of silent suffering to light. Jameela narrates a few stories, which are reproduced here: 

• Back in the 1990s, Rehana was married off to a Sheikh and ended up being remarried 17 times to different sheikhs. Her family abandoned her as she returned to Bharat, but she is said to have returned to the Gulf; her whereabouts are unknown. 
• Another girl in Hyderabad was also married 17 times, going through hell; she chose to take her life in 2017. 
• Yet another girl, a daughter of a widow, the youngest among three sisters, was happy to be married off to a Sheikh and regularly sent money to her mother, about 10-15 lakhs in total, before succumbing to diseases she contracted. 
• A girl named Sana, a minor at the time of marriage (around 15-16), managed to escape to the Indian Embassy, get an emergency visa, and return home. 

Most women married off in this manner are discarded by the time they turn 35. These women end up as workers cleaning the streets or something similar in the Gulf. It is alleged that they are given pills to prevent pregnancy, and if, by chance, one does get pregnant, the divorce is imminent.

Apart from this kind of abuse, the family members of the Sheikhs also indulge in physical as well as sexual abuse of these minors.

A cultural malaise and the pervasive silence of feminists

The root of this barbaric practice lies in the internalised mentality of Indian Muslims, often perpetuated by Ashrafi elites, who believe in “Arab supremacy.” Shockingly, no feminist organisation or platform has raised its voice against this malaise, nor have they rallied against this exploitation. All they know is to shun the so-called “brahminical patriarchy” and would go to the extent of saying Hindu Dharma propagates child marriages.

On the wrong side of the enablers

Jameela’s relentless efforts to rescue the girls included receiving threats, fatwas, and court cases that tried to deter her from going ahead with her mission. To date, she says she has rescued over 2000 girls and hints at the involvement of black money and that she fell on the wrong side of the MIM (AIMIM) who have been issuing these threats to her. These fatwas and cases were nullified over time through the court.

AIMIM – the lapdogs of Arab imperialism

The complicity of certain political entities, such as the AIMIM, raises alarming questions. The disturbing reality unfolds: those meant to protect their people instead act as lapdogs of Arab Imperialism, suppressing any dissent against this exploitation. On the one side, the Owaisis, who are at the helm of the AIMIM, make hate speeches and mock Hindus and Hindu Dharma; they also enable such barbaric flesh trade, which is ruining their own ilk.