Reproductive health [1] practices among Muslim women in India have been little researched perhaps because of the widespread notion regarding the tight Islamic control over sexual behaviour and the sanctions against contraceptive use.

Scrutiny and control of women's sexuality and women's reproductive role by the state are well recognized in the history of societies [Sarkar 1993]. Tribal wars over possession of women were rooted in the struggle for survival of the tribe itself.

There are two major competing explanations for the relation betwee