To celebrate and IN TIME

The initiative by Wakf Board to streamline Muslim marriages looks promising

For the third time he checked the wedding card. He had made no mistake — the venue, date and time was correct. But there was no sign of the bridegroom yet although it was getting past 10 pm. Riyaz had come to the shadikhana soon after the maghrib prayer only to find it nearly empty.

A diabetic patient, he need to eat on time. But now he didn’t know when food would be served as the nikah itself had not taken place.

Riaz is not alone to face this predicament. Muslim marriages in Hyderabad are known for two things — lavish, delicious spread and the late hour it is served. Such are the timings that many families are forced to think twice before they attend these weddings as it entails children missing school the next day and patients suffering health hazards.

The recent decision of the state Wakf Board to streamline the marriages has come not a day too soon. An internal churning has already been going on in the community for quite sometime with many openly voicing their dissent at the unearthly hour food is served and celebrations continuing late into the night. Yet nobody dared to bell the cat, until now.

Ostentatious, late night ceremonies

Marriages in the Muslim community, particularly in Hyderabad, are no longer the simple affair they used to be. The practice begun by a few NRIs of turning marriages into elaborate affairs with several rounds of eating and merry making, to reflect their affluence, has had a domino effect. Everyone else has gradually jumped on to the bandwagon, even those who can’t afford it. Result, austerity has gone for a toss. Leave alone the affluent, even the middle class and low income group families do not consider any expense too high when it comes to marriage. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board’s campaign for making ‘ shadi saadi ’ (simple) has no takers, more so in the city of Nawabs.

This is one of the reasons why poor families from the Old city are forced to marry off their girls to oil rich Sheikhs from Middle East, says a Wakf Board official. Truth is Muslim marriages are becoming expensive and tedious although ulemas do regularly address this issue. Be it a nikah or valima, serving of food past midnight has become a norm while the rituals spill over into the wee hours. Imagine the plight of the elderly and unhealthy. As for children, many fall asleep without eating.

In this scenario the Wakf Board’s decision to curb wedding extravagance and late hour ceremonies has come as a welcome relief. But some feel marriage is a personal matter and authorities shouldn’t interfere in it.

People stay at different places in the city and it takes time to reach the function halls, they argue. At least the police shouldn’t be roped in to ensure that marriage halls are shut down by midnight.

“But when the community is not able to discipline itself we have to step in,” argues Board’s chairman, Mohd Saleem. He took the initiative recently to convene a meeting of qazis, ulemas and police to deliberate on the matter. “There is nothing wrong in enforcing discipline when things have gone out of hand”, says a Board official, echoing the views of many others.

“Both from a scientific and an Islamic point of view it is not advisable to delay dinner. Eating heavy and spicy food late at night is ruining one’s health,” says Moulana Obaidur Rahman, Khateeb of Teenposh Masjid, Red Hills. He has been vociferously preaching against extravagance and late hour marriages in his Friday sermons.

Other problems

The late night functions have another angle to them – the nuisance they cause, especially when firecrackers are burst and loud music played on roads. Recently there was also this shocking incident of a youth succumbing to wounds sustained while brandishing swords during a marriage baraat . Celebratory firing is also gaining traction, triggering an outcry to put an end to such practices. “There is no room for such practices in Islam; we must get rid of them in the interest of the community,” says Mufti Khaleel Ahmed, Rector, Jamia Nizamia, south India’s biggest seminary.

Hamed Mohammed Khan, President, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Telangana and Odisha, also concurs with this view. “You can’t keep the guest waiting for dinner. It amounts to an insult, besides causing hardships to them,” he remarks.

The Wakf Board has set a deadline of 9 pm for solemnizing the nikah at function halls. Qazis who cross this limit will face action.

“Government has no stand against the trend of late night celebrations. We can’t force people to change their eating habits. But it is proper that one should eat at proper time”, says Deputy Chief Minister, Mohammed Mehmood Ali.

“I welcome the step taken by the Wakf Board to instil discipline,” says Moulana Obaidur Rahman Athar.

The new guidelines were supposed to come into effect from February 1. But so far there has been no implementation. “The whole thing is impractical. Change has to come from within the community”, says MBT leader, Amjadullah Khan.


Life is too short not to celebrate nice moments. But it shouldn’t be at the cost of others.

 J.S.Ifthekhar,

Hyderabad based journalist.

Article published in The Hindu

Dated February 8,2018