The Shaheen Bagh Strike: Muslim Women and Political Protest in Contemporary India

Authors

  • Moumita Biswas Diamond Harbour Women’s University

Keywords:

feminist strike, Shaheen Bagh, multiple patriarchies, intersection feminism

Abstract

The Shaheen Bagh protest in New Delhi highlighted the changing dynamics of Muslim women’s participation in socio-political movements in India. This paper argues how Muslim women proved themselves to be concerned citizens while protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (2019) and other forms of social discrimination. The paper analyses the Shaheen Bagh protest from an intersectional perspective to understand how Muslim women voiced their political opinions negotiating with gender and religion-based discrimination; they had to fight the multiple forms of patriarchy of Indian society while protesting against hypermasculine Hindutva politics. The Shaheen Bagh protest can be called a feminist strike of Third World women for the rights of their religious community in a particular socio-political context.

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Author Biography

Moumita Biswas, Diamond Harbour Women’s University

Moumita Biswas is currently working as Assistant Professor in the Department of Women’s Studies at Diamond Harbour Women’s University, West Bengal, India. She has completed her M. Phil in Women’s Studies and is pursuing PhD in English Literature from Jadavpur University. She is enthusiastic about interdisciplinary research and her areas of interest include feminist theory, queer theory, Dalit literature and contemporary poetry.

References

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Cover image shows an illustration of bright blue figures holding hands while walking up a hill. The figure in front is holding a red flag with the symbol for "woman" on it (circle with cross beneath). The background behind the figures is bright yellow.

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Published

2023-12-20

Issue

Vol. 44 No. 2 (2023): Formations of Feminist Strike

Section

Reflections and Commentary

License

Copyright (c) 2023 Moumita Biswas

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