Women in Kabinnama

Women in Kabinnama deals with a brief history of the conjugal relations in Muslim families in the nineteenth century Bengal. The author, Dr. Bilkis Rahman, has attempted to reconstitute the nature of the relationships between husband and wife based on a meticulous and thorough study of the marriage deeds (kabinnama). She examined the terms and conditions in 122 marriage deeds of Muslim families belonging to the nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth century.

While the religion of Islam permits a man to marry up to four women, the marriage deeds examined by the author show that men were discouraged to marry more than one woman and there were several clauses in a marriage deed safeguarding the interest of women, even ensuring the right of divorce on the part of women. Some marriage deeds testify that the position and status of women in Muslim families was extremely high. The main objective of the book is to highlight the fact that the provisions laid in the Muslim Family Law Ordinance, 1961 in respect of marriage, divorce, subsistence etc. are not unprecedented. Rather, an analysis on the terms and conditions asserted in 122 marriage deeds will show that some arrangements were already made in safeguarding the interest of the women.

As social conditions changed, the author maintains that Muslim women enjoyed less and less freedom and rights for various reasons. The investigation carried out by the author indicates that due to the recognition by the society that women represented a weaker sex, the Muslim Family Law attempted to stop deteriorating conditions of women. It would be interesting to note that today’s Muslim women do not enjoy the same degree of protection that the women of the nineteenth century did, she concludes.