Aunt Sakina and Saltpans

The Trombay Island Congress committees organized marches on a regular basis Trombay to Sumannagar to take salt in protest of British prohibitions on salt making. As the first men got arrested and taken away, the women came forward. Among them was Amir Ali’s well-respected and elderly aunt, Sakina, who was known as a leader of the woman’s movement in Chembur. The wife of a local doctor, Aunt Sakina also developed her own medical skills and would visit people’s homes to provide medical aid.

In September of 1931, a procession of 35-50 women gathered to march to the salt pans under the Indian national flag. Aunt Sakina, then 60 years old, led the walk of a mile and a half from Trombay to the salt pan. The police set up a barricade to stop the procession from reaching the salt pan, but being locals themselves, they were apprehensive to attack the protestors, but carried out a charge against them nonetheless. When one of the police struck Sakina’s forearm with a lathi (bludgeon) the police recognized her and realized the gravity of the situation. Not being able to look her in the eye, the police submitted to the demands of the women protesting and allowed them to take the salt from the salt pans.