Ahmedabad, Oct. 7: Zehra Cyclewala is not a born rebel. She became one after a fatwa (religious decree) was issued nearly 20 years ago to ?break her will??. But the 47-year-old is made of sterner stuff and has continued to defy the fatwa all these years.

Forced to fight for her survival, Zehra has emerged as a flagbearer of reform within her orthodox Dawoodi Bohra community that ostracised her for challenging the supreme religious leader, Syedna Muhammed Burhanuddin.

The Mumbai-based Syedna who belongs to Surat virtually regulates the lives of every member of the community.

Zehra?s struggle began in 1985 when the supreme leader issued a fatwa ordering his followers to give up their jobs and withdraw money from banks that charge interest on loans, considered a ?sin?? and ?un-Islamic??.

Although her fellow Bohras resigned from the managing committee of the Saif Cooperative Credit Society where she worked as a manager, Zehra refused, saying she had no other means of livelihood.

The refusal marked her out as the first Bohra woman to defy Syedna?s decree in Surat and probably the first anywhere to do so.

Zehra was ready to quit her job if the leader helped her find a new one. But when she asked the Bohra elders to find her a job, she was told to have faith in God. ?But that would not have helped me as I had to look after my ailing mother,?? she said.

Some community members began to harass her, getting her demoted from manager to junior clerk. But Zehra did not give up and fought a legal battle to get reinstated. When a court ruled in her favour, indignant community members boycotted her. Even her brothers and sisters deserted her when she could have dearly done with their support.

Zehra?s mother, who always stood by her and shared her woes, died in 1991. Her body was taken to the burial ground, but some Bohras objected, not willing to allow last rites to be performed for her as she had supported Zehra.

There was no end to the manager?s harassment. She was dubbed a ?non-believer?? and some of Syedna?s rabid followers would spit on her. Zehra would be chased and hounded; she was greeted with the choicest abuses when she stepped out and no Bohra would speak to her.

Fearing for life and bombarded with threats, Zehra sought and received police protection in 1995.

With a tinge of sadness she said: ?Today, I have no friends in my (Bohra) community. I do have Hindu and Muslim friends, but no one from my community.??

But Zehra has no regrets. ?Yes, after my mother?s death, I am leading a lonely life. But I am happy that I have inspired many women who have been victims of injustice in my community. Whenever they call me up, they get instant justice as the community does not want another Zehra,?? she said.

Zehra was recently in London to attend the reformist Dawoodi Bohra conference where her biography One Against All was released by British MP Tim Boswells.

The 146-page book chronicles her story ? that of a B.Com graduate who was forced to take up cudgels against society. Her rousing story is still unfolding.

As Zehra took on Syedna, reformist Bohras settled abroad took note of her struggle. She has been invited to many countries to tell her story of how a single woman could resist the might of the community and battle against their tyranny.

In all this, Zehra, who chose to remain unmarried as she realised she was too liberal and educated for the men of her community, has one question for Syedna who has rented out large property in his hometown Surat. The fearless manager asked: ?If the income from rent is okay, how is that the interest (from income) is a sin??