In a sensational claim, author and activist Dilip Mandal has claimed that Fatima Sheikh, celebrated as India’s first Muslim school teacher, never existed. In a post on X on 9 January, Mandal claimed that Fatima Sheikh is a fictional character created by him, and that she was never a real person or historical figure.
He also said that that is why there is no photograph of Fatima Sheikh, and the sketch being used is also fictional. In the post titled Confession, Dilip Mandal wrote, “I had created a myth or a fabricated character and named her Fatima Sheikh. Please forgive me. The truth is that “Fatima Sheikh” never existed; she is not a historical figure. Not a real person. It is my mistake that, during a particular phase, I created this name out of nothing—essentially from thin air. I did that knowingly.”
He claimed that here is not a single entry for her in a Google search earlier, saying “No article, no book, no mention. Nothing.” Mandal added that his interest in her vanished in 2022 when he abandoned the story of Fatima Sheikh. She came in social media narrative and just vanished, he said.
However, he didn’t give any specific reason on why he created the ‘fictional character’, saying “Do not ask why I did it. It was a matter of time and circumstance. A figure needed to be constructed for a purpose, and so I crafted one. Thousands of people can attest to this—most of them heard this name from me for the first time.”
Mandal further claimed, “I know the art of creating narratives, of building images. I have mastered this craft, so it was not difficult for me. A fictional sketch was created because there were no old photographs. I spun many stories about her. And thus, Fatima Sheikh came into being. The story spread. Those who needed this narrative for political and ideological purposes amplified it.”
He also said that the name of Fatima Sheikh is not found in the writings of Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule. Notably, Sheikh has been described as a colleague of social reformers Jyotirao Phule (also known as Jyotiba Phule) and Savitribai Phule in Maharashtra.
Dilip Mandal wrote, “The complete writings of Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule have been published, and nowhere is the name Fatima Sheikh mentioned as someone who taught alongside them. Even Babasaheb Ambedkar never referred to such a name. No biographer of Mahatma Phule or Savitribai Phule has mentioned Fatima Sheikh. No Muslim scholar referenced this name until 15 years ago. British documents that discuss the educational efforts of the Phule couple make no mention of Fatima Sheikh either.”
She is nowhere to be found—absolutely nowhere, he said, adding at the end, “I have mentioned Fatima Sheikh’s name the most. I admit to this. But she never existed”.
As evidence that reference to Fatima Sheikh didn’t exist before he ‘created’ her 15 years ago, he posted a screenshot of a Google Trends chart for the term Fatima Sheikh since 2004, which shows that it search for the term peaked in January 2022.
He later posted several other tweets relating to the matter, and retweeted a 2023 tweet by Ambedkarite Central with a letter by Savitribai Phule, saying this was the only instance when Fatima was mentioned. The tweet added that nowhere it is mentioned or even there’s a single hint which claims that she was also a teacher and helped to establish school for Dalits.
When a person alleged that he is lying, Dilip Mandal said that Savitribai Phule is not from from Harappa era, she is from our times and there are records of her. He said that old newspapers can be seen libraries. He also challenged to find a mention of Fatima’s birthday celebration before 2006, saying that he would accept that he didn’t create the character if such a reference is found.
If the claims of Dilip Mandal are true, this will mean he has been successful in inserting a fictitious character in India’s history. Numerous articles on Fatima Sheikh have been published in media, describing her as a pioneering teacher, anti-caste activist, proponent of girls’ education, and social reformer. She has been regarded as a feminist icon from British India.
In fact, there is a Wikipedia article on Fatima Sheikh, and Google celebrated her 191st birthday on 9th January 2022 with a doodle.
The references cited in the Wikipedia article are recent, therefore it aligns with Mandal’s claims. However, a book titled Women Writing in India: 600 B.C. to the early twentieth century, published in 1991, is also mentioned in the references. The book mentions that Fatima Sheikh was a colleague of Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule when they opened schools, especially for lower caster girls.
The book published by Feminist Press at the City University of New York is a collection of over 200 articles from eleven languages.
However, the book mentions the name only once, saying, “The schools Jotiba and Savithribai Phule started in Pune were meant especially for lower-caste girls. Their colleague, Fatima Sheikh, was a Muslim woman.” There is no other mention in the book. Therefore, it is possible that while there was a coworker of Phules named Fatima Sheikh, she was not a prominent activist as claimed now.
While Fatima Sheikh indeed may have existed and worked in schools set up by Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule, Shri Mandal is insistent that she is fictitious. Further, it’s true that much of the glorification of Sheikh has happened only in the last decade or so, and her mention on the internet was almost non-existent before that.
