Situation still tense in Kumarkhali

Many women of several villages in Kushtia's Kumarkhali upazila are still passing their days in fear while working in fields, nearly two weeks after a fatwa (edict) was issued forbidding women to work at fields. 

The victim women as well as the general farmers are afraid that a vested group may create an unpleasant situation for the women who work in the fields.

“A vested quarter is still running propagandas against the women who work in the fields,” said a 33-year old woman, on condition of anonymity. 

The woman, wife of a day labourer of Kalyanpur village in the upazila, said she helps her family by rearing goats in open fields.

She alleged that some people in her locality are talking in favour of the fatwa issued by a local mosque imam. 

While visiting the area on Monday, this correspondent saw a small number of women were working in different fields of Kalyanpur, Arpara and Khorshedpur villages.

Forty-five-year-old Samed Ali of Khorshedpur village said his two daughters help him in fields as he cannot hire labourers from the market.

Samed said his daughters are not assisting him anymore in the fields since the fatwa was announced about two weeks ago.

Moshiur Rahman, president of a girls' school managing committee, said, “I do not see any trouble if women work in the fields.”

Azhar Ali Mondol, 68, one of the headmen of Kalyanpur village, said the imam did not bar working of women in fields, rather he told about increase of anti-social activities due to men and women working together in the fields.

On December 13, a Kushtia court granted one day's remand for three people, including Mohammad Abu Musa, imam of Kalyanpur Jame Masjid, in connection with a case for issuing a fatwa (edict) forbidding women to work at fields.

On December 8, some people led by the imam sat at a closed-door meeting and later announced through the mosque loudspeaker that no women in the area would be allowed to go to field for work.

After local people reacted against the fatwa, Sub-inspector Biplob Kanti Sarker of Kumarkhali Police Station filed a case against six people in this connection on December 11.

The following day, police detained Abu Musa, Altaf Hossain, Motiar Rahman, Ansar Ali, Abul Hossain and Abu Daud and produced them before a court on December 13.