Watch: Women activists enter Mumbai’s Haji Ali Dargah after winning long legal battle

After winning a legal battle over the entry of women in inner sanctorum of Haji Ali Dargah, around 80 women on Tuesday paid homage, in a first to the holy shrine.

Women activists of Bhartiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) fought a long battle to achieve an unprecedented reversal of thoughts and ideologies.

Earlier Trupti Desai with some other activists have tried to enter the shrine claiming the right of women to visit dargahs and other religious places like men do.

ALSO READ: (Entry of women in Haji Ali: Supreme Court extends stay on Bombay HC order)

The quest to regain the rights began in 2011 when Dargah trustee denied women right to enter the grave and in 2012 co-convener of BMMA, Noorjahan Safia Niaz, was stopped from entering the shrine.

BMMA filed a PIL at Bombay High Court in August 2014 against gender discrimination asking court to allow all people who want to visit the dargah.

Earlier, in August 2016 the HC allowed women to enter the inner sanctum of the Dargah saying that trustees of the shrine do not have power to change the decorum of it.

ALSO READ: (Mumbai’s Haji Ali Dargah informs SC it’s ready to allow women entry in sanctum sanctorum)

The shrine trust appealed to Supreme Court challenging Bombay High Court. However, on October 24, 2016 the apex court ruled that women will be allowed to enter the shrine just as men can.