What is ‘Bulli Bai’, why the controversy over Muslim women pics & how it’s similar to Sulli Deals?

A major controversy has broken out over objectionable & obnoxious depiction of Muslim women on the Bulli Bai App. The issue came to light after some prominent Muslim women highlighted how their photos were being used with sexist & misogynist text.

According to one social media user, at least 100 Muslim women with strong presence on Twitter have been singled out and their photos are being displayed & forwarded as ‘Bulli Bai’.

BulliBai App is an App similar to Sulli Deals created & used on the GitHub. The latter is primarily as hosting platform, with a repository of open source codes. Once you open the Bulli Bai App, it will allow you to randomly use a Muslim woman’s face & display it as ‘Bulli Bai of the day’.

Akin to Sulli Deals, couple of Muslim women have been targeted under the hashtag #BulliBai as their photos are being shared with offensive comment.

A leading journalist Ismat Ara shared the horrible photo of her being misused under the hashtag. She also expressed anger & disgust over being treated in such obnoxious manner.

Not just the scribe, couple of other noted Muslim women have been targeted. Their photos are being publicly ‘auctioned’ on the Bulli Bai App, sparking strong criticism of the App & those behind the trend.

As the issue snowballs into row inviting public ire, Congress MP Md Jawaid & Shiv Sena Priyanka Chaturvedi have reached out to Union Home Minister & Mumbai Police for action in the case. Both have demanded that the perpetrators and those ‘behind the design’ be brought to book.

Several people including AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi condemned the incident, calling for action against perpetrators.

By line: Divya Thearia