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By:

Akhilesh Sinha

25 June 2025 at 2:53:54 pm

Driving Change

Once trapped by poverty and abuse, Sufina found freedom behind the wheel — and now helps women travel safely across Delhi. The woman who once felt unsafe is now ensuring women travellers get home securely from Delhi’s airport, day or night. Among those providing this round-the-clock service is Sufina, a cab driver with the “Driven by Women for Women and Families” initiative. Sufina, who now offers peace of mind and safe journeys to female passengers, was once deeply troubled herself. But she...

Driving Change

Once trapped by poverty and abuse, Sufina found freedom behind the wheel — and now helps women travel safely across Delhi. The woman who once felt unsafe is now ensuring women travellers get home securely from Delhi’s airport, day or night. Among those providing this round-the-clock service is Sufina, a cab driver with the “Driven by Women for Women and Families” initiative. Sufina, who now offers peace of mind and safe journeys to female passengers, was once deeply troubled herself. But she refused to give up. Pulling herself out of hardship, she not only became self-reliant but also an inspiration for marginalised women in society. Partnering with the Sakha-Azaad Foundation, Sufina has scripted an extraordinary story. Sakha Consulting Wings launched this women-driven cab service for female passengers under the brand  Women with Wheels . All drivers, including Sufina, received training in driving and self-defence through the Azaad Foundation. Born Into Hardship Living in East Delhi’s Anand Vihar, Sufina was married to a daily wage labourer at just 16. By 18, she was a mother. Poverty was crushing; meals were often scarce. Desperate to escape this misery, she began searching for a way out. That was when she met a Sakha volunteer who suggested driver training. It became the turning point in her life. The road ahead, however, was anything but easy. Breaking Free Sufina was stepping into a male-dominated world, and it frightened her at first. Yet her hunger for financial independence gave her courage. In the early days, she faced strong opposition from both her husband and parents. Before leaving for work, her husband would beat her and lock her inside the room to stop her from attending training. But Sufina refused to surrender. Teaming up with her mother, she found a way out. After her husband left for work, her mother would unlock the door. Before he returned, Sufina would quietly slip back home to avoid more conflict. After completing her training, she worked as a private driver for nearly two years, continuing the same routine. As her earnings, confidence and independence grew, so did her assertiveness — and with it, her husband’s suspicion. One day, when he raised his hand again, Sufina fought back. She told him she would not tolerate it anymore. Shocked, he stopped. He never hit her again. Driving Change Sufina believes the turning point in her marriage came when her husband fell seriously ill. She admitted him to a private nursing home and paid for his treatment from her own savings. From then on, he began trusting her and valuing her work. Though the struggle had been painful, Sufina emerged stronger. She now asks a powerful question:  Why must a woman endure so much just to prove herself? Today, she is determined that her daughters should grow up with freedom and choice. In her community, she is respected and admired. Local girls and women see in her a path to self-reliance and dignity. The woman who once lived in fear now helps other women travel without it — and in doing so, she is driving change far beyond Delhi’s roads.

Idol Uproar

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

The removal of Sai Baba idols from temples in Varanasi city has ignited a fresh wave of religious contention in India. Saffron groups and senior Hindu seers, led by the Sanatan Rakshak Dal (SRD) and the Brahmin Sabha, have successfully campaigned for the removal of Sai Baba idols from over ten temples in this revered Hindu pilgrimage city. They argue that Sai Baba’s worship deviates from traditional Hindu doctrine and that he should not be included in the pantheon of Hindu gods.

The SRD and Hindu leaders in Varanasi clarify they are not against Sai Baba but oppose his idols in temples due to his absence from ancient scriptures. While they present this as a matter of doctrinal purity, critics view it otherwise. But this is no simple doctrinal dispute. The controversy highlights a fundamental tension between religious orthodoxy and eclectic devotional practices that often flourish in India’s diverse spiritual landscape, between North Indian orthodoxy and Maharashtra’s syncretic traditions. Sai Baba’s home is not in North India but in Shirdi, Maharashtra, where he has been venerated for over a century. To the millions of his followers, Sai Baba is a saint and a divine incarnation. Yet in Varanasi, India’s religious heartland, he is an ‘outsider.’

The SRD’s argument, which echoes a broader orthodox Hindu belief, is that only traditional deities such as Shiva, Vishnu, Ganesha, and Shakti can be enshrined in temples. Sai Baba, who lived as a fakir, cannot be considered a Hindu god.

The historical ambiguity of Sai Baba’s identity is at the core of this debate. Sai Baba’s origins remain shrouded in mystery. Arriving in Shirdi as a young man, he became a spiritual guide whose teachings transcended religious divisions. Is Sai Baba Hindu or Muslim? He lived in a mosque, dressed as a Muslim, and spoke of Allah. Yet his message resonated with Hindus, and he permitted rituals from both religions, referring to Hindu deities as often as Islamic teachings.

For his devotees, these distinctions are irrelevant; he is simply God. But traditionalists insist that no mortal man, even one as venerated as Sai Baba, should be deified in Hindu temples. The SRD’s campaign has resonated among traditionalists in Varanasi, but in Maharashtra, the move has struck a nerve. Sai Baba is a central figure in the state’s spiritual life, his shrine in Shirdi attracting millions of pilgrims each year. The controversy has been rapidly politicized. Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh’s Samajwadi Party has labeled the removal of Sai Baba idols a BJP ‘stunt’ aimed at creating division for political advantage. The BJP’s emphasis on Hindutva may alienate voters in Maharashtra, where Sai Baba is widely revered.

Critics see the removal of Sai Baba’s statues as a push towards religious exclusivity in a country celebrated for its diverse beliefs. The uproar raises questions on what it means to be Hindu in modern India and whether saints like Sai Baba, who defy categorization, still have a place - an answer that seems to vary by region.

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