The argumentative, humanist Muslim

A more than five decades old book has become a modern classic on Muslim politics in India, and its relevance today more vital than ever

Muslim Politics in India

Author: Hamid Dalwai (translator: Dilip Chitre)

Publisher: Vintage Penguin Random House

Pages: 144

Price: Rs 499

This is an extraordinary book by an equally extraordinary author. Hamid Umar Dalwai was primarily an activist, who was born in Maharashtra in 1932. He joined the Socialist Party in the 1960s. As a committed secular-modernist Dalwai devoted himself to initiating radical social reforms among Muslims. He was deeply critical of postcolonial Muslim leadership, including the so-called nationalist Muslims associated with the Congress. Dalwai campaigned against the practice of triple talaq and polygamy and even demanded a common civil law for all citizens