Manipur's 1st Muslim woman candidate hoists PRJA flag

IMPHAL: Najima Bibi, the first Muslim woman candidate of the state to contest assembly polls, on Friday hoisted the flag of her party - People's Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA) - at her Santhel Mamang Leikai residence in Wabagai constituency.
Two other candidates and leaders of the party - Irom Sharmila Chanu and Havard University alumnus Erendro Leichombam - had carried out similar ceremonies in Imphal a couple of days ago.
Minutes after Najima ended her flag-hoisting event around 8.30 am, a large number of PRJA supporters and wellwishers, mostly Muslims, took out a procession of vehilces along the Kakching-Irong stretch within the constituency. Najima, Sharmila and Erendro led the motorcade.
Including Najima, the co-convener of PRJA, six candidates are in the fray from Wabagai that will go to the polls in the second phase on March 8.
Others candidates include sitting Congress MLA Fajur Rahim, Usham Deben (BJP), Md Abdul Samad (MNDF), Mohammad Habibur Rahman (NPP) and Mayengbam Ranjit (NEIDP) .
Najima (46), who is facing religious persecutions by some village leaders for contesting polls, hoisted the flag along with her husband Ayub Khan. Before entering electoral politics, Najima had worked at the grassroots level since 2001 in areas of livelihood, women and child rights, violence and conflict resolution.
Since her announcement that she would be the first Muslim woman candidate to contest the assembly election, Najima has been facing persecution as local religious leaders had publicly announced that she would be given no "Kabar," or resting place in the village, without reason.
"The villagers are discouraged to even talk to her because of her political involvement and upon asking the religious authorities to give a written reason why she has been persecuted, they have declined to either give any comment or any written reason," Najima told this reporter.
"I believe that I have been deliberately sidelined by my opponents from my village because I'm a woman. I had taken up the issue with governor Najma Heptulla during a recent meeting with PRJA leaders at the Imphal Raj Bhavan," she said.