It is a concise compilation of a few of less known Muslim women who took part in the Indian Freedom Struggle.
Begum Mahboob Fatima: On 13 April 1932, two women were arrested at Chandni Chowk in Delhi by the police for commemorating the anniversary of the massacre at Jallianwala Bagh. These two were Begum Mahboob Fatima and Satyawati. On 21 April 1932, Begum Mahboob was sentenced for six months of Rigorous Imprisonment and Rupees 50 of fine. With this she became the first Muslim woman to have been sentenced during the freedom struggle in Delhi.
Sultana Saleem: Sultana Saleem was one of the officers of Azad Hind Fauj, or INA, of Subhas Chandra Bose. Her husband Colonel Saleem, whom she met during the war, also served the INA and Sultana was an officer of Rani Jhansi Regiment. Sultana reached India as part of the first contingent of captured soldiers of Rani of Jhansi Regiment in February 1946. The Indian Express reported on 22 February 1946, “Mrs Sleem felt that there was only one country for her- Hindusthan – and only one nation – Hindustani. She did not believe in either communalism or provincialism. It was the oneness of India that appealed to her most. In East Asia, she said there was no consciousness at all of religious or provincial differences and no untouchability problem. She believed that if India had freedom her many problems could be solved without much difficulty.”
Asghuri Begum: In 1857, when somewhere else Rani of Jhansi and Begum Hazrat Mahal were fighting against the colonial army of the English East India Company, in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli, peasant women had organised themselves in armed bands. The leader was Asghuri Begum. The region had been liberated by the Indian revolutionaries where the women contingent was being led by Asghuri. When Major Sawyer conquered Thana Bhawan, a town in Shamli, in October 1857, Asghuri was also captured. British troops tied her to a pole at a public place and set fire to her alive.
Nishat-un-Nisa: “I appeal to the youth of this country that they sit at the feet of this goddess (Nishat un Nisa Begum) to learn the lessons of independence and perseverance.” These were the words of famous Urdu poet Pandit Brij Narayan Chakbast. Nishat was the first Muslim woman to address a Congress Session and that too without a purdah. Hasrat Mohani, who coined Inquilab Zinadabad, was her husband. Nishat attended the public political meetings without her husband. She wrote articles, led delegations to Viceroy, participated in strikes and was the first woman to move a resolution for complete independence at a Congress session.
Saadat Bano: Saadat Bano whose husband Saifuddin Kitchlew is known as the hero of Jallianwala Bagh was a writer, poet and political activist much before her marriage. She wrote extensively for women rights, patriotism and education. It is a well known fact that people gathered at Jallianwala on 13 April 1919 to protest the arrest of Saifuddin but it is often overlooked that they came to listen to a public address by Saadat. Saifuddin was in jail but Saadat did not sit at home in those times. She used to address meetings, meet political leaders, attend Congress sessions, write in papers and take part in All India Women Conference activities. She was considered orator par excellence.
Amjadi Begum: How important a person would be if Gandhi himself wrote in one of his articles that this ‘brave woman’ led the ‘fundraising campaigns’ from the front ? Almost no history student in India knows Amjadi Begum. They know her as the wife of Maulana Muhammad Ali Jauhar. Gandhi in one of his articles wondered whether she could teach her husband the art of public oratory, where one impressed upon the hearts of the audience in a few words. She is believed to have single handedly led the fundraising campaigns and managed affairs of Jamia Millia Islamia when her husband was in prison.
Moondar: Rani of Jhansi’s movement had an important Muslim woman, viz. Moondar. She was a close aide and assisted her during battles. Robert Hamilton, agent of Governor General to Central India, informed the British government on 30 October 1858, “Rani was riding a horse. There was another Muslim woman riding with her, who used to be her servant as well as companion since many years. Both fell down from the horse with the bullet wounds simultaneously.” Another British officer John Venables Sturt claimed that the body recovered by the British was not of Rani but Moondar’s.
Nani Hakko: Nani Hakko was a jolaha (weaver) woman from Panipat who was impressed by Mahatma Gandhi’s idea of boycott and swadeshi. The she first heard him, Hakko started weaving her own shroud. She willed to be buried in a khadi shroud. When someone asked her what she was weaving, she would reply, ““I am weaving a kafan (shroud) for myself”.
Hakko left this world only the day after completing this khaddar ka kafan. She asked people to bury her in this handwoven shroud (khaddar ka kafan) and boycotted the foreign made cloth even in her death. According to Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, she was the first person to have been buried in khaddar ka kafan as a result of Gandhi’s call to charkha. Khwaja wrote, “she was the first one to be buried in a khaddar ka kafan — a patriot unto death!”
