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Urban Transition and Muslims communities

Research & Writing by Khushi Khan | Guided by Sophiya Islam

The report aims to encapsulate the idea that the world-acclaimed ‘urban transition’ in India cannot be analysed by focusing only on the black-and-white absolutes of architecture and urban policy. It rather needs to be studied with deeper repercussions that urban development and eventual decay of community-space relationships embolden, specifically for minorities.

8. Delhi Muslims

Delhi riots 2020 © Sajjad Hussain /AFP via Getty Images | www.foreignpolicy.com

Drawing upon the work of eminent writers such as Ahmed Ali, Kalyani Menon, Ema Tarlo, Vazira-Yaccobali Zamindar, Nazima Parveen, Christopher Jefferlot, Laurent Gayer, etc. this report brings out the ways in which Muslims in India have understood spaces and made sense of nationhood. Using qualitative analysis, data collected via field trips to Old Delhi and Jamia Nagar, and scrolling through archives in the Partition Museum, the author fleshes out the crisp trajectorial description of Muslim citizenship in India, their idea of home, their everyday struggle to balance their Muslim-ness and often questioned Indian-ness in the strident majoritarianism driven landscape of India.

The report not only focuses on the cultural and emotional ties that enrich the relationship between people and spaces, (as individuals often imbue spatiality with memories and identity, reflecting their values and traditions) but also how they deteriorate in the face of political events. Additionally, the report shows how people gradually adapt and transform spaces to meet their needs, whether by personalising their homes or organising public areas for community events.

The report seeks to create a discourse around an often-neglected topic, thereby positing on readers, as the author intends, urban spatial policy enthusiasts to take into consideration the holistic idea of Muslims' idea of home so that inclusive policies can be drafted and implemented for establishing true democratic socio-geographical spaces in India, which allow every community to thrive as one.

Full version to be published soon.

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