Awaz-The Voice

For over a decade, Shama Mohamed has navigated the challenges of being a Muslim woman in Indian politics. Despite the passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill, she points out that no Muslim woman from Indian National Congress received a Lok Sabha ticket in 2024, and only two Muslim women serve as MLAs nationwide.

Shama says the biggest barrier for women in politics—especially in Kerala—is patriarchy within the system itself. She highlights three challenges she faces: not coming from a political dynasty, being a woman, and being Muslim.

Before politics, she worked as a dentist and later as a journalist with Zee News. Her passion for public affairs eventually led her into political debates and party work. Balancing family life with political responsibilities was difficult, but she remained determined.

Through her Zoya Charitable Trust, she now works on education, healthcare, sports, and women’s empowerment in Kannur.

Ganga–Jamuni Tehzeeb isn’t just a phrase—it’s the soul of India. Born from centuries of everyday coexistence, it represents a way of life where Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, and other traditions shaped each other through music, poetry, language, food, and shared spaces. This culture grew naturally in markets, homes, festivals, and shrines—teaching people to live with differences without fear. It was never about sameness, but about harmony.

From Kabir’s verses to Sufi qawwalis, from Hindustani language to Indo-Islamic architecture, India’s composite culture proved that creativity flourishes when traditions meet. Devotion crossed boundaries, festivals became collective celebrations, and art turned into a bridge between communities. The idea was simple: faiths can remain distinct while still respecting and enriching one another.

Indian ultra-runner Sufiya Sufi just made history—completing the brutal Manali–Leh high-altitude run in 98 hours and 27 minutes, a world-first for any woman. Covering nearly 480 kilometres across five Himalayan passes, battling freezing temperatures and thin mountain air, she pushed through one of the toughest endurance routes on the planet. In early 2026, she officially received her long-awaited Guinness World Record certificate, turning an incredible feat into a globally recognised milestone.

Sufiya’s journey is anything but ordinary. Once working a steady aviation job in Ajmer, she started running simply to stay fit. That hobby turned into passion, and passion turned into records. She has already earned multiple Guinness titles—including running the most marathons by a woman in a year, completing a 4,000 km Kashmir to Kanyakumari run, and conquering India’s 6,002 km Golden Quadrilateral route. Each challenge demanded extreme discipline, mental grit, and unstoppable self-belief.

Modern political Islam tried to “fix” Muslim decline by turning faith into an ideology. Thinkers like Maududi and Qutb imagined Islam primarily as a political system that needed state power to survive. But in doing so, they reshaped a rich spiritual and moral tradition into something narrow and rigid. Classical Islam was never an “ism.” It was a way of life—ethical, plural, and adaptable. Pre-modern Muslim scholars spoke about justice, mercy, and human fallibility, not about building ideological states.

This modern turn reduced faith to politics and morality to power. Concepts like Maududi’s hakimiyyah and Qutb’s idea of jahiliyyah turned complex societies into simple battlefields of “us vs them.” Instead of encouraging moral growth, they promoted control, conformity, and suspicion. Thinkers like Al-Ghazali, Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn Arabi, Rumi, and Shah Waliullah imagined Islam very differently—as a spiritual journey and ethical tradition, not a political machine. For them, justice mattered more than labels, and inner transformation mattered more than government authority.

My joy is like that of a labourer who receives his wages the same evening,” says Ghafruddin Jogi Mewati, now a Padma Shri awardee. At 68, the folk artist from Alwar isn’t celebrating fame—he’s acknowledging a lifetime of struggle. From wandering barefoot across Mewat with a bhapang in hand to standing recognised by the nation, this honour feels like long-overdue payment for keeping a dying art alive.

Born in Rajasthan’s Kaithwara village, Ghafruddin picked up the bhapang at just four, learning the rhythms from his father, Budh Singh Jogi. A Muslim artist singing the Mahabharata in the Mewati dialect, his music reflects India at its most honest—where stories, faiths, and identities flow into each other without fear. His performances remind us that culture has never needed permission to cross borders.

India’s greatest strength lies in its plural traditions and shared human values. At Awaz–The Voice, we believe religion in India has always been a bridge, not a barrier—shaping ethics, coexistence, and a deeply rooted sense of Indianness. Our journalism celebrates this composite culture, where diverse faiths and perspectives come together to form a vibrant, living identity.

In times of polarisation, Awaz has remained committed to balance, dialogue, and mutual respect. While much of today’s media thrives on conflict, our focus has been on stories that unite, inspire introspection, and encourage understanding across communities. We aim to amplify the spirit of India, not its divisions.

Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) has urged the government to prioritise employment generation and fair wealth distribution in the Union Budget 2026–27. While India’s economy has shown strong growth, JIH says the benefits have not reached people equally, with high youth unemployment and rising household costs continuing to strain ordinary families.

In its budget submission, JIH emphasised making job creation a clear outcome of public spending. It called for stronger support to MSMEs, promotion of labour-intensive industries, targeted urban and rural employment programmes, and measures to stabilise farmers’ incomes. The memorandum also highlighted the need to reduce healthcare expenses and support educated youth through apprenticeships and skill-linked opportunities.

The organisation further stressed targeted socio-economic support for Muslims, citing long-standing gaps in education, employment, and access to credit. On the revenue side, it suggested moving towards more progressive taxation to ensure fairer distribution of resources.

In a digital world, time is still written by hand in Jaipur. 🕰️✍️

Hidden in the lanes of Ramganj Bazaar, Quran Ghar / Naeem Book Depot has kept alive the handwritten Kota Calendar for nearly a century. Scripted by 75-year-old Haji Azimuddin, this simple pink-and-white calendar brings together Hindi Panchang, Gregorian dates, and Islamic lunar dates—along with Urs, lunar cycles, and thoughtful messages.

What began with just 100 copies now reaches 30,000 homes every year, across Rajasthan and even abroad—powered not by technology, but by trust, tradition, and devotion.

A six-year old Kashmiri girl’s appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lessen her burden of ‘long zoon (online) classes’ and ‘too much' homework has born fruits as the government has decided to make a policy on homework for children.

In line with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of AtmaNirbhar Bharat, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval commissioned Indian Coast Guard (ICG) Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) Sajag through digital means and dedicated it to the nation for safeguarding the maritime interests on May 29, 2021. OPV Sajag is constructed by M/s Goa Shipyard Limited. Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar, Indian Coast Guard Director General K Natarajan and CMD Goa shipyard Cmde BB Nagpal (Retd) were among those who attended the event........ Read full article

Dania and Rida Khan, students of the Bombay Scottish School, are campaigning to save the horses of Matheran, a popular hill resort close to Mumbai, Maharashtra, who face starvation as their owners have lost their livelihood because of the Covid-19 pandemic

Dania, 12 and Rida Khan, 15, are sisters. Both of them have raised Rs 3 lakhs through crowdfunding to raise support for the horse owners and also the horses. They buy rations and prepare kits to be distributed among the owners of the horses and also fodder and water for the animals........ (Read the full article)

No one trusts China.

Talking to his Chinese counterpart on 11 February 2021, Joe Biden expressed concern over China’s coercive and unfair trade practices, its violation of human rights, crackdown in Hong Kong, and mistreatment of Muslims, aggressive actions in Asia including Taiwan, and obfuscation over the virus. Beijing wants the world to forget these issues....... Read the full article of Indian Diplomat Deepak Vohra

Ziauddin Barni, a contemporary of Hazrat Amir Khusrau, writes in Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi “The incomparable Amir Khusrau stands unequalled for the volume of his writings and the originality of his ideas for, while other great masters of prose and verse have excelled in one or two branches, Amir Khusrau was conspicuous in every department of letters. A man with such mastery over all the forms of poetry has never existed in the past and may perhaps not come into existence before the Day of Judgment.”.......... (Read full article)

Irfana Zargar supplies free sanitary items to needy women in public spots.Municipal Corporation worker spends a part of her salary for women’s hygiene....... (read full article on Menstrual Hygiene Day)