Women activists enter Haji Ali dargah

MUMBAI: Marking a victory for campaign for gender equality in places of worship, a group of women activists today entered the sanctum sanctorum of Haji Ali dargah here and offered prayers.

The entry by members of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) into the mausoleum came more than a month after the Haji Ali Dargah Trust told the Supreme Court it will allow women inside the inner sanctum of the shrine. Women devotees' entry into it was banned a few years ago.

"Around 400 women from BMMA today went to the dargah. We also offered a 'chaadar' (shawl) there and paid our respects to the saint," Zakia Soman, co-founder of BMMA, said.

She said the trustees were very courteous and did not resist their entry into the sanctum sanctorum of the dargah, one of the famous landmarks of Mumbai.

"On the contrary, they offered us tea and spoke to us for some time. Their welcoming stand towards women is a great moral victory for us," she said.