New Delhi: A claimant to the post of the leader of the Dawoodi Bohra community has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking the government to bring a legislation to ban the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM). In addition, he also drew the attention of the government to another practice called khafz (or clitoral de-hooding) that is often done on minor girls.
In his letter dated 23 January, Taher Fakhruddin wrote: “I would like to take this opportunity to reiterate my position and unequivocally condemn the practice of FGM. I also call on the government to introduce legislation to ban the practice and make FGM illegal.”
Taher Fakhruddin is embroiled in legal proceedings in connection with the ongoing succession case in the Bombay High Court. Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin is the 53rd al-Dai al-Mutlaq and present leader of the worldwide Dawoodi Bohra community.
Talking about khafz, he raised concerns about the practice being carried out on young girls “without their consent” in “unhygienic, unsanitary and unsafe conditions”.
“Additionally, I would like to bring to your attention a separate practice called ‘khafz‘ which is different from FGM, and has been practiced in our faith. This practice has also drawn considerable attention from activists. A few years ago, women from our community came to me, highlighting their legitimate concerns regarding the unhygienic, unsanitary and unsafe conditions under which it is routinely carried out on young girls without their consent and which can lead to lifelong medical complications and trauma,” he wrote.
In response to these concerns, he claimed that he had issued a public directive banning khafz on young girls and instructed all community members to stop this practice or to wait until girls had reached the age of maturity and could make a “conscious choice” to undergo khafz under appropriate conditions including medical supervision.
FGM refers to the practice of complete or partial removal of female external genitalia, on the premise that it will keep their sexual desires under control. The extent of the practice varies from country to country.
In his letter, he wrote: “The khafz procedure is analogous to Clitoral De-Hooding (CDH), which is a medically sanctioned and fairly common procedure, especially in the West. It is not the removal of part of the clitoris as inaccurately reported by some media outlets. The purpose of this procedure is to improve a woman’s sexual health. It is performed by qualified surgeons in a clinical environment.”
4 million girls undergo FGM globally
Female genital mutilation has for long been opposed by various UN organisations working in the field of public health and women’s rights. UNICEF estimates that about 4 million girls, mostly under 15 years, undergo the process globally every year. It has set a deadline of 2030 for the elimination of FGM. In December 2012, the UN General Assembly adopted a unanimous resolution on the elimination of FGM.
There are no authentic Indian statistics about the number of girls forced to undergo FGM but activists say 80 per cent to 90 per cent of Bohra girls are subjected to the process – known as khatna. Sometimes the mutilation is done by ill-equipped traditional circumcisers attending childbirth.
In the past, several organisations have taken it up at various levels of the government. In 2017, an organaistaion called “Speak Out on FGM” which has many people who had survived the inhuman practice, wrote a letter to PM Modi asking for the practice to be banned.
FGM is banned in many countries including the USA, UK, Australia and several African nations. There is a petition currently pending in the Supreme Court seeking a similar prohibition of the practice in India.
(This is an updated version of the article)
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