Women, Morality and Law: Prostitution in Kashmir

Abstract

Of the many systems of governance and rule by the colonial rulers, in both British India and the princely states, the control of sexuality according to Victorian morality norms was central. Among many other things, extramarital sexuality was strictly policed. In particular, prostitution came under attack in Kashmir, as in other regions of India. Legislations were enacted to monitor the work of prostitutes’ viz. the Public Prostitutes Registration Rules (1921) and The Suppression of Immoral Traffic Regulation (1934). This paper engages with the ways prostitution was regulated in Kashmir in the early twentieth century by the then rulers, whether by Dogras or their colonial masters. What is of particular interest is to highlight if prostitution defied western sensibilities of morality for women, why was the trade not altogether banned but merely regulated by enacting new legislations. What interests did it serve the state to legalize this trade? And did the local community discourse make any attempts to stop it? In this regard, the life and work of Muhammad Subhan Hajām, a barber by profession, who through various means, in particular, how through his writing of Hidayatnamas (guidelines) in Urdu and Kashmiri languages, attacked prostitution in Kashmir, will be studied.

Keywords:

• Victorian morality
• sexuality
• patriarchy
• colonialism
• marginalization
• subaltern women

Acknowledgment

I wish to thank my supervisor, Dr. Nonica Datta, for her critical reading and suggestions on the earlier drafts of this paper and two anonymous reviewers and editor of South Asian Review for their comments. I am indebted to Peerzada Mohammad Ashraf for opening up his treasure trove of private paper collections for my perusal, Tooba Rashid for her help with translations and Sritama Bose for some last minute editing.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the autho(s).

Notes

1 The information about the year the brothels were legalized by the Dogras in Kashmir is missing in both the official archival records as well as the private collections of individuals.

2 272 is probably a code name for someone who acted as a pimp or ran a brothel.

Additional information

Funding

This work is financially supported by the Indian Council of Social Science Research.

Notes on contributors

Sana Kochak

Sana Kochak’s research interests are in the study of Modern South Asian History with a particular focus on Kashmir. She has recently submitted her Ph.D. thesis titled “Gender Discourses, Community Narratives: Women in Twentieth-Century Kashmir” at the Center for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. Before this, she completed her MPhil Degree from the same institution. The title of her MPhil thesis was “Gender and Marriage among Kashmiri Muslims in the Twentieth-Century and Beyond.” Kochak’s research so far has focused on education and marriage practices amongst Kashmiri Muslims and their intersection with community, gender, and politics. Broad research interests include women, gender, Islam, Kashmir, law, violence, love, and militancy. Kochak has two published research articles to her credit.