18 August 2017

As the annual haj approaches, Salaam Gateway turns to key issues affecting pilgrims. In Indonesia and India, the countries with the largest Muslim populations, different interpretations of Saudi Arabia's mahram, or male guardianship, ruling have been skewing the gender balance of pilgrim cohorts.

Indonesia has an agreement with Saudi authorities to allow female pilgrims without accompanying male guardians to be placed in a convoy with other females and act as each other's mahrams.

India, however, does not allow any haj applications from women without a mahram. However, Haj Committee of India chairman Choudhary Mehboob Ali Kaiser told Salaam Gateway that changes to India’s haj guidelines have not been ruled out.

India’s Shariah-sensitive Muslim women, and men, continue to face financial exclusion in the absence of Islamic banks and a shortage of Shariah-compliant investment options in the country. Equity and real estate are popular means of managing wealth for Indian Muslim businesses and individuals but those without easy access to the capital and property markets are forced to seek out unconventional means of financing what they consider to be in consonance with their faith, including bissi and credit societies.

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