Religious Leaders' Views on Rights of Khwaja Sira in Pakistan.

Sameena Azhar, Atmaja Acharya, Imtyaz Ahmad, Muhammad Arshid, Md Saimum Islam, Dania Malik

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Article in Health and human rights, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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6 authors.

Sameena AzharMPH is an associate professor at Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service, New York City, United States.

Atmaja AcharyaReceived her PhD in economics from Christ University, Bangalore, India.

Imtyaz AhmadPhD scholar in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Hazara University, Mansehra, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and a graduate research assistant at Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service, New York City, United States.

Muhammad ArshidAssociate professor in the Higher Education Department, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Md Saimum IslamMSW student and social work researcher at Jagannath University and a research assistant at Fordham University, New York City, United States.

Dania MalikLecturer and public policy researcher specializing in climate migration, human rights, and governance.

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6 · The paper itself

Abstract

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, religious leaders play a significant role in shaping public attitudes toward khwaja sira, people who identify as third gender. This study explores the perspectives of Muslim religious scholars and leaders in District Mansehra, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on the human rights of khwaja sira. Applying a rights-based framework, we conducted 40 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with Muslim religious scholars and leaders. Through abductive analytical techniques, we identified three key themes: (1) perceptions of human rights for khwaja sira in Pakistan; (2) third gender recognition in Islam; and (3) third gender recognition by the state. Our findings illuminate tensions between human rights frameworks and local religious understandings, while also suggesting that the views of religious scholars and leaders may be leveraged to shape public opinion on cisheteronormative notions of gender and sexuality in the Pashtun context.

Indexed as

Human RightsIslamLeadershipReligious PersonnelFemaleHumansInterviews as TopicMalePakistan

Identifiers

PMID42441030

PMCPMC13334987

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