Female genital mutilation prevalent among Bohras despite rising anger

Hyderabad: Victims of the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation in Mumbai have been speaking out about the practice that is prevalent among the Bohra community in India and others around the world.

Both the United Nations and the National Commission for Women in India have taken note of this practice. February 6 was declared International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation.   

No one has openly spoken out about FGM in Hyderabad, though hundreds of young girls undergo the procedure every year in the city. Young girls from families in Trimulgherry, Red hills and other parts including Old city have been secretly subjected to this practice. Some girls are taken to Mumbai, Kolkata or Gujarat for the procedure, now mainly carried out by doctors, while others undergo the surgery in hospitals in Hyderabad.

FGM is done when the girls are five or six years old. The practice is not discussed much, probably for fear of attracting condemnation. Parents who refuse to follow this tradition are likely to a face community boycott.

The Bohra community believes the clitoral head to be ‘unwanted skin,’ a ‘source of sin’ that will make women ‘stray’ out of their marriages. They referred to the clitoral head as ‘haraam ki boti’ (immoral lump of flesh). Some women from the community in Hyderabad have spoken out, giving details on condition of anonymity.

“Here, 99 per cent of young girls undergo khatna (FGM), because this is an age-old practice. It is the most secretive practice that happens in the most close-knit community in the city. No one will talk about it here,” said a 37-year-old woman, who had undergone FGM when she was seven years old.

She said that in Hyderabad even gynaecologists in super speciality hospitals are ready to carry out the procedure. "I cannot reveal the name of the hospitals, but gynaecologists from famous hospitals in the city are ready to do this surgery, and agreeing to do it in secret," she said.

In the past, the procedure caused immense pain because of the way it was done. "Earlier, old women (nannys) from the Bohra community used to perform this procedure. They did it without anaesthesia, which causes pain, shock, tetanus, genital sores, excessive bleeding etc. But now things have changed. Surgical procedure with anaesthesia and antibiotics has reduced the risk of infection," said a 42-year-old Bohra community member.