On 29th November, another report was published by Aaj Tak on “Nikah Mutah” (pleasure marriage per Islam) and “marriage to Sheikhs” which has been operating like a business in Hyderabad. The report sheds light on how these evil practices started in Hyderabad and how they are carried out in the present time. According to the report, their foundation was laid during the period of the Nizams when soldiers (known as Chowsh) from Yemen were summoned by them to guard their wealth.
These soldiers married Hyderabadi women and had children to raise the Nizam’s army, some of whose descendants are today brokers and agents for Nikah Mutah. Their offsprings did not get citizenship in Arab countries after returning to their homeland and they started marrying their daughters to the Sheikhs. Initially, the marriages were not short-term, but later they were performed for pleasure and divorce dates were set at the same time as such unions. Their future generations began acting as agents and brokers for their daughters.
Meanwhile, the Sheikhs also realized that Hyderabad had arrangements to fulfil their deplorable needs. According to their religion, visiting sex workers is haram (forbidden), so they searched for an alternative in India. They started keeping girls with them after the wedding for 10-15 days until they were satisfied and then would leave them. In their eyes, they were meeting their needs and not breaking any laws in accordance with their faith.
According to the report, which cites Islamic experts, old Sheikhs from Arab nations travel to Hyderabad on medical visas, where they purchase girls at low prices and then use them to meet their sexual needs because marrying a lady in Arabia has multiple requirements and is also very expensive. The fact that the locals in Hyderabad understand Telugu and Urdu yet medical instructions are written in Arabic to ensure the wealthy Sheikhs have no trouble is a strong indicator of the hospitality the Sheikhs receive there.
The report showed that the Sheikhs visited Hyderabad more during Ramzan. They do as they wish in the Islamic holy month, even though many things are prohibited in this month. They believe that their youth will return if they have physical relationships with young or virgin girls. Many Sheikhs examine a girl’s pulse to determine whether or not she is a virgin. It should be noted that in Nikah Mutah, a girl’s status as a grownup is a condition, nevertheless, starting her period does not equate to being an adult as menstruation could begin at even 13 or 15 in this day and age.
Several households in Hyderabad are meeting their daily needs as a of Nikah Mutah. They sell girls at a young age and then run their expenses. According to the report, 33 out of 100 homes in Hyderabad’s Barkas neighborhood had these marriages, and this practice is still in place. The strange aspect is that Islamic scholars consider this a form of liberty. For instance, Dr. Abbas, an expert in Shia Theology at Aligarh Muslim University stated that if someone wanted to test their partner before entering into a permanent relationship, then Nikah Mutah could provide a way as long as the pair consent to it.
The serious matter of Nikah Mutah has already been discussed earlier in our report, which was based on Aaj Tak’s probe where the shocking stories of the victims were narrated. The pain of a girl who was impregnated by her “Sheikh uncle” who did Nikah Mutah and then departed after 15 days as she was left to give birth to their daughter alone was exposed. It described how females are sold to Sheikhs by brokers in Hyderabad in exchange for Rs 20 to 50 thousand. Girls are paraded before the Sheikhs so they can select their target. Their body measurement is taken and then they are handed over to the wealthy old men in the name of marriage and they get exploited. Furthermore, the report mentioned Hyderabadi women who reside in Arab nations and assist Sheikhs in sexually and physically abusing girls or in providing information on them when they are in Hyderaba
