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Blind Muslim teacher barred from renting flat in India

Reem Shamsuddin says landlord refused to hand her apartment keys because she is Muslim

Web Desk July 25, 2015

PHOTO: YOUTUBE

A Muslim teacher in India suffering from impaired vision has claimed she was denied renting accommodation because of her religion.

"When I arrived at the flat with my luggage the landlord refused to give me the keys saying she could not rent the flat to a Muslim," Reem Shamsudeen said in a video posted on YouTube.

The 30-year-old, an assistant English professor at Delhi University, said she had paid in advance for the accommodation so she and her mother could move into the flat after the summer holidays.

In the video which went viral on social media and received about 15,000 views, Shamsudeen requested the chief minister of Delhi to look into the matter and guarantee that people do not face discrimination based on their religion.

Read: Indian Muslim allegedly forced to vacate flat because of her religion

“I believe... Delhi you promised to accommodate every citizen, Bihari, Bengali, Malayali, Manipuri, Kashmiri, Goan, black, white, man, woman, transgender, gay, blind, deaf, homeless," she said as she addressed the chief minister.

She added, “I hope no one will have to encounter this kind of shameful and inhuman experience in future and I urge you to kindly look into the issue.”

“Of course this was a shocking experience, considering Delhi boasts of a cosmopolitan and metropolitan nature all the time,” she went on to say, adding that she never experienced discrimination based on religion while she lived in Hyderabad. The thirty-year-old lived in Hyderabad for eight years to complete her MA, MPhil and PhD.

Read: UK reverend banned from teaching over 'allergic to Muslims' remark

Although she has since rented another flat along with her mother, Shamsudeen said she was horrified by the experience. narrating that the landlord refused to hand her the keys for the apartment because she is Muslim.

Social activists have taken up Shamsudeen’s case with the National Commission for Minorities and are hoping get the Delhi government to look into the matter as well.

Read: German court says Muslim teachers can wear headscarf unless disruptive

Speaking to the Hindustan Times, Shamsudeen said that this was not an isolated case of discrimination and told the paper that she has nothing further to say on the incident.

Meanwhile, sources from the college reported the 30-year-old did not want her case to be politicised. “She does not want the incident to get politicised. May be she is scared about her job,” a teacher said.

The article originally appeared on The Hindustan Times

COMMENTS (32)

Arshad Kamal Khan | 8 years ago | Reply These incidents happening in India are regretful. But we can not be carried over and start to blame Indians,Let us all maintain some balance before expressing our extreme views. It only complicates matters. There rae most wonderful human beings in both Pakistan and India. Those who indulge in discrimination are simply ignorant idiots.

Arsha | 8 years ago | Reply @Bewildered: You do know that a majority of Hindus are non vegetarians?

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Rumormonger | 8 years ago | Reply What can you expect from a person of religion which is based on a caste system. They even discriminate among themselves, where can other religions come in.

kartikey | 8 years ago | Reply she never experienced discrimination based on religion while she lived in Hyderabad , IndiaSO DELHI IS THE MOST RACIAST.

observer | 8 years ago | Reply @Bewildered: "Well all those tens of millions of Indian Hindus living and working in Muslim and Christian states don’t have any problem living alongside, even sharing the same apartment, with non-vegetarian Muslims and Christians, but they do have big problem living with non-vegetarians in India." Your argument is known in logic as "fallacy of over-generalization". First of all, not all Hindus are vegetarian. If you do some honest research you will find that, though there can be exceptions, most Hindus that you quote who live alongside non-vegetarians themselves eat meat. Just because some Hindus are ok with living next door or in the same apartment with meat eaters, if doesn't mean strict vegetarians should forgo their right to live in a meat-free housing area.

sharabi | 8 years ago | Reply Many Hindus are victims too, This is a matter of VEGETARIAN Vs NON-VEGETARIANS, one of my Rajput Hindu friend was refused just because he was a non-vegetarian. I dont find any hatred in that. Owner of a private property is free to rent or refuse his property.

Bewildered | 8 years ago | Reply @Union Jack: Well all those tens of millions of Indian Hindus living and working in Muslim and Christian states don't have any problem living alongside, even sharing the same apartment, with non-vegetarian Muslims and Christians, but they do have big problem living with non-vegetarians in India.

Sonny | 8 years ago | Reply It s true that this might happen based on religion but the fact is that it is not the religion. many hindus particularly jains follow a strict vegetarian policy and would not rent it to anyone who eats meat- they will not rent even to sindhis. I do not think it is actually a religion thing but it is strictly against that faith. I dont see anything wrong in that- landlord has the right to deny. Many people deny rentng out to lawyers and policeman and even politicians. So I think we should leave them to it. So many times individuals from other religon are denied but we do not notice so why make such a hue and cry about a mulim being denied. Lets be a bit tolerant ourselves.

illawarrior | 8 years ago | Reply @RT: The woman was a college professor and had already paid the rent in advance. There was no suggestion of affordability, and the reason of religion was openly given.

goggi (Lahore) | 8 years ago | Reply In Lahore Shia people may also have difficulties renting a house in densely populated Sunni Mohallas, even more than Ahmadis, Christians; Hindus or people of any other religious community. Just as the smell of cooked meat is disgusting and spewing for the vegetarian Hindus and Jains, similarly the self-flagellation rituals of Shia people are perceived from Sunni people as inhuman and un-Islamic. These are the root causes of communal hatred and dissociation in the very polarized societies of India and Pakistan.

Naveed | 8 years ago | Reply This has become a trend, from USA to Europe.....China to Australia...often Muslims are denied jobs, properties in these countries...... it's time to soul searching why Muslims are not trusted?

Ravi | 8 years ago | Reply @Aziz, it is true that some Indians discriminate based on religion. They sometimes do not give their houses to Minorities. We need to fix this. But we do not kidnap, rape and forcibly convert Minorities in our country. Can Pakistanis say the same about Pakistan. So maybe you should consider forgoing the lecture to Indians till you fix your society.

Vectra | 8 years ago | Reply There can be many reasons for not renting and calling it discrimination is bit naive considering she has got another flat accommodation.So you say 1st owner made discrimination but forgot to mention 2nd owner did not.So what you say about that???.Now if you say the 2nd owner is muslim then you are simply assuming just like you are assuming now in this article that she was discriminated based on her religion.But what id the 2nd owner who gave her rent is Hindu???

observer | 8 years ago | Reply @Union Jack: You are correct that most vegetarians do not want to live close to those who eat meat. But, it is not just the smell that is the problem. The vegetarians have compassionate, religious belief and cruelty issues with living very close to non-vegetarians. Also important is that they don't want animals such as chicken killed in their vicinity. Most vegetarian Indians don't also want to live close to meat eating Hindus, Sikhs etc. So, in most cases, Muslims are denied not because of religious intolerance.

Ashish (India) | 8 years ago | Reply Religion is not always the factor, two years ago I went to take on rent a flat in New Delhi, everything got finalized but the very last moment the landlord asked me, you can cook only vegetarian food here, I told him me and my wife are vegetarians but please allow eggs for my 3 years old daughter, he just politely refused, in the end we end up writing this clause in the Rent-Agreement that we only cook vegetarian food in the premises! The Tale of a Hindu Tenant.

Union Jack | 8 years ago | Reply @crew: Nope we are not ashamed. I would be if I did not know the reasons why muslims are not allowed to buy property or rent in certain neighborhood. And though it always makes news when a "muslim" is involved because its something which flies pretty fast in Pakistan, the fact is that many non muslims in India who eat non veg find it difficult to find rent or buy property in vegie only neighborhood. The problem being the intolerance towards smell and not the religion. Once you allow the non vegitarian eater rent a flat can anyone say them what to cook and what not too ? But this point is never highlighted cause non veg eaters are mostly always insensitive to vegitarian eater's needs. This by no way undermine the problem in India where the communal integration suffers, but well what is the solution ? Tell the vegitarians to suffer the smell o they are not labeled "racist"? Before jumping to conclusions Pakistanis must develop a habit to learn more than whats been taught in their text books about India.

Woz Ahmed | 8 years ago | Reply Awful discrimination, wouldn't happens in our nation to say Afghans ? Discrimination at at all levels is abhorrent !

Asia Bibi | 8 years ago | Reply In India a minority women can voice against discrimination through various medium and justice will be done but in Pakistan minorities are sitting duck with no voice through any medium. This is the fundamental difference between India and pakistan.

Moaka | 8 years ago | Reply @Doctor: Its is not fair to Muslims living in India. They have been discriminated for too long.They too are rightful owners of Pakistan and must have share of its blessings. Each and every Muslim citizen of Pakistan must pledge to share its bounty by adopting Muslim family from India and the best tribute to the accomplishments of Qaid.

Anon | 8 years ago | Reply @Anwar Hasan: Yiu defy logic and you are self loathing

Anon | 8 years ago | Reply @RT: Another Maha delusional Indian

G. Din | 8 years ago | Reply Why force yourself on those who don't want you to be amongst them? Let us for a moment assume that Khichriwal is able to force a landlord to rent his premises to you against his will for whatever reason, you must consider the fact that Khichriwal will not be there for all time holding your hands. There are a thousand ways to make you opt out yourself after you are in. What will you do then? Sue those who forced you out, ( not necessarily the landlord directly)? Will you be able to sustain such a "principled" (Muslims are always "principled") stand? The best thing under the circumstances is to walk away.

Anwar Hasan | 8 years ago | Reply There could be 1,001 reasons why the landlord did not rent her the flat, but we love the play the victim card. We are Muslims and we are discriminated.

crew | 8 years ago | Reply @RT so you mean the possible reason from barring her was that she was handicapped. That's far more disgusting to say the least. What you really meant I take is that Indians have no problems with other religions but they have problems with visually impaired people. Shame on you

Uzair | 8 years ago | Reply Sadly, this is one of the many incidents of discrimination against Muslims in India. I pray that they get emancipation from discrimination and other oppressive measures.

RT | 8 years ago | Reply This is non sense. Delhi has very high rental costs. If the landlord thinks the person is not capable of paying rent, he/she will automatically refuse. Given this woman is handicap, such questions will surely be in the mind of landlord.

Patrotic Baloch | 8 years ago | Reply Several Hindus live in Muslim countries allover the world and it is in India where Muslims are denied their basic rights. Shame.

Liberal | 8 years ago | Reply I have Hindu neighbors but we have never treated them differently. But in India Indians are not willing to provide equal rights to Muslims Christians, Dalits.

Doctor | 8 years ago | Reply Incidents like these make me grateful to Qaide Azam for the creation of Pakistan.

aziz | 8 years ago | Reply Want to see response of Indians who love to bash Pakistanis for discrimination against minorities.

Pakistani | 8 years ago | Reply Thankfully in Pakistan we can rent apartments in any area we want depending on our budget.

crew | 8 years ago | Reply Indians should be ashamed

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