Women's Mobility and Migration

Muslim women have remained invisible in the larger discourse on migration. This paper shows how Muslim women who have migrated to Jamia Nagar in Delhi are leading a more fulfilling life in their new locality, as is evident from the fact that they claim to have migrated for social security, well-being, better opportunities and higher education. Many of them are fleeing from small-town prejudices and overbearing families. However, it is also true that while Muslim women, belonging to different socio-economic backgrounds seek mobility, this is often achieved within the rubric of familial and community strategies of both migration and of living together as members of the same community in a territorial space marked out as their own. This has certain implications that both facilitate as well as impede their need for employment, safety and autonomy. Legal and policy frameworks must pay more attention to women migrants to create a gender sensitive migration policy.