Approach of the Study

29 As time went by, Jasvinder built a foundation namely Karma Nirvana. After she built the charity, she could easily meet some victims of forced marriage. “Karma Nirvana is the charity that has a purpose to help women who live in suffer and Ayesha was one of its first clients ” Sanghera 2. When Jasvinder listened to Ayesha, she realized that she became a witness to her suffering. She wanted to make her feel valued as an individual. She wanted to give a better future for the victims of forced marriage. Therefore, “Karma Nirvana had a purpose to support forced marriage victims like Ayesha – who suffered so often. It became the main concern of Jasvinder Sanghera when she helped other women. It was the cornerstone of everything Jasvinder did Sanghera 12 Karma N irvana‟s vision was inspired by the bitter experience of Jasvinder‟s sister, Robina. Robina commited suicide by burning herself to escape from her husband. Therefore, Jasvinder‟s life was driven by pain and guilt. She was unable to reconcile herself to the fact that she did not prevent Robina‟s death. I was inspired by the terrible death of my sister Robina, who burnt herself to death to escape her husband. It seemed to me then hers was a uniquely awful fate. Out of morass of emotion came my vision for a charity that would help women like Robina and my mum, women whose lives were being blighted by cultural and language difficulties Sanghera 8-9. Jasvinder knew that the victim of forced marriage could call Karma Nirvana anytime. Therefore, Karma Nirvana had a commitment to always listen to the voice of women who needed help. Karma Nirvana‟s phone number was always available for twenty-four-hours. The staff always listened to the screams of women who needed help. Karma Nirvana was always hectic, an over-crowded 30 off ice and had the endless women‟s voice on the phone whispering their fears. They needed to be rescued. Detective Superintendent, Tony Hutchinson from Cleveland police appreciated Jasvinder‟s action. He knew nothing about forced marriage until he went to a conference in London. At that event, Jasvinder was invited to attend as a speaker. Jasvinder could give a clear explanation which changed Tony‟s idea. He saw his phone line as a local project. Tony‟s idea – like Karma Nirvana when it first started out – was small scale and very practical. He wanted to introduce a twenty-four-hour free phone number, manned by up to twenty volunteers, which would be dedicated to callers ringing about forced marriage or honour-based violence Sanghera 164. Karma Nirvana had been established for a year in Derby. Day by day, Jasvinder proudly introduces herself as the worker of women‟s freedom. She fought for women who had been the victims of forced marriage. She said that she worked for Karma Nirvana, a Derby-based organisation helping south Asian women who had been the victims of honour-based violence and forced marriage.

2. Choosing to Work rather than Taking a PhD Degree

E arly that summer, Gordon Riches, who had been Jasvinder‟s tutor when she was an undergraduate at Derby University, came to Karma Nirvana. He tried and persuaded Jasvinder to do a PhD on honour-based violence. As soon as she started her PhD proposal, she knew that the work was what she really wanted to do.