Councillor son wish costs seat

Patna, July 24: The desire to become a mom of a son has robbed a councillor of her seat in a state that was headed by a chief minister with nine children for 15 years.

Bihar State Election Commission disqualified Rehaana Khatun from holding the post of councillor of ward number 25 in Phulwarisharif for being mother of six children, with effect from July 15.

A graduate in political science, Khatun, could not believe her eyes when she received a notice on May 25 this year from the state election commission. The notice ordered Khatun to clear her stand after Mohammad Imitiaz Ahmad, a resident of Phulwarisharif, filed a petition against her with the commission for having six children, four daughters and two sons.

According to the Bihar Municipal Act, 2007, a ward councillor is not entitled to be on the post if he/she has more than two children. A candidate having more than two kids is not allowed to contest the election of ward councillor.

When she was elected as a councillor, Khatun had three children, the municipal rule on children was not in force at that time but she gave birth to three more children after being elected.

The Telegraph visited the ward councillor’s house. On being asked the reason behind having six children, Khatun said: “When I was elected ward councillor, no such rule was in force. After a year, in 2008, the rule of children came into effect. But I wanted to have more children, as I did not have any son. With three daughters already, my husband also wanted a baby boy. In fact, my fourth child was a boy after which I had another girl and another boy.”

“I could not believe that someone from my area filed a petition against me with the state election commission. I am really disappointed by the decision. Why me? There are many other councillors who have more than two children but no action has been taken against them. Why?” Khatun asked.

Busy consulting experts on the matter, Khatun said: “I have consulted few experts whether the action against me is valid or not. I have come to the conclusion that it is not legal and I have every right to give birth to the child and this is what my religion says,” said Khatun. She vowed to go to the high court against the state election commission’s order.

Khatun’s husband, Shah Zahid Hussain, said: “My first three children were girls. I wanted to have a boy to carry forward the family name. It was a mutual understanding between my wife and me. But we never thought that we have to pay the price in this way.”

He added: “The rules enforced by the Bihar Municipal Act are not correct. Why should not this rule be implemented for MLAs, MLCs and ministers? Even they represent the masses. If the state election commission is really serious about controlling the population in our state, why does not it apply this rule on other people too?”

Within a span of 10 years, Khatun has given birth to six children — the eldest daughter is 12 years old and the youngest one is a five-month-old boy.

When asked to comment on the issue, Maulana Anisur Rahman Qasmi, the general secretary of Imarat Shariah and chairman of the Bihar State Haj Committee, he said: “Having more than two children cannot be the reason for sacking a councillor. If such is the rule, it should also be applicable to MPs and MLAs. This amounts to violation of human rights and preventing the birth of a child is a crime in Islam. Such kind of termination will affect the representation of Muslims in the mainstream. There is a need to rethink on the issue,” said Qasmi.