Hyderabad is seeing a disturbing rise of “Sheikh marriages”, where young, minor muslim girls from financially weak families are married off to wealthy Sheikhs from the Gulf countries in promise of better, secure future. Strikingly, majority of these marriages donnot last months. According to middlemen/agents, the ‘Sheikh Marriage’ culture shockingly sees a surge in the month of Ramzan and areas like Shahin Nagar, Barkas, Yakutpura, and Charminar in Hyderabad serve as the prominent centres for this regressive culture. The Sheikhs from Gulf countries are not the only one involved in this ‘cult’ but wealthy individuals from Sudan and Somalia too are engaged in this practice.
Sheikh marriages are historically rooted in the concept of Mutah marriages. These are short-term marital arrangements that were once common in Arab nations. While the practice has largely disappeared in the Gulf but it thrives in Hyderabad. The facilitation of such marriages are done with the help of middlemen, brokers, agents who make a fortune out of this.
Local women, often referred to as “aunties” or “brokernis,” identify families in financial distress with young daughters. Agents share photos of the girls with Sheikhs, who then select potential brides for themselves. The meetings between Sheikhs and young girls are organised in beauty parlors or homes, where a “parade” is organized for the Sheikh to make his final choice.
Following this, a quick nikah is conducted, and the family receives an advance payment. The girl is often taken to a hotel or, in some cases, abroad. The agents, who earn approximately ₹50,000 per marriage, handle logistics such as forging age certificates, arranging visas, and securing passports. Local hotels and hospitals are often complicit in this practice.
Many Sheikhs enter India under the guise of medical tourism, a sector contributing significantly to the Indian economy. Agents fluent in Arabic, Hindi, and Telugu facilitate communication and act as interpreters for these Sheikhs.
The girls, many of whom are minors, are lured with promises of a better future. However, these marriages typically last only a few weeks, after which the girls are abandoned. Some are taken abroad, where they face abuse as domestic workers or are exploited in other ways.
The physical and emotional toll on these girls is profound. Many develop severe health issues, including sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Contraceptives are often administered to prevent pregnancies, and in rare cases, abortions are arranged.
The girls who get into the circle of Sheikh marriages come from very poor muslim families. Sheikhs and the agents use poverty to fulfill their sexual perversion. The brokers have mentioned that convincing girl families is not very tough for Nikah. Many families see these marriages as a money making bag where they can make lakhs in a few days. Some girls and their families even try to deceive the Sheikhs using tricks like fake virginity tests.