Darul Uloom Deoband, the world's second-largest Islamic seminary (after Cairo's Al-Azhar University), and the largest in India, has issued a number of fatwas in recent years restricting women's movement in public life in India.
Following are blog posts on fatwas issued by Darul Uloom Deoband, from the MEMRI South Asia Studies Project:
Darul Uloom Deoband Fatwa: Marrying Non-Muslims Is Haram For Muslims
The leading Indian seminary Darul-Uloom Deoband has said in a fatwa that that it is haram (unlawful in Islam) for Muslims to marry non-Muslims, according to a Hindi-language daily. The fatwa also said that in choosing a marriage partner, religion should take precedence over wealth. It also said that children should follow the choice of their parents for marriage instead of going by their own wishes, according to the report, in the Hindi-language newspaper Dainik Navbharat Times.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/35192.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband: Women Cannot Preach Or Deliver Sermons
The prominent Indian Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband has issued a fatwa declaring that Muslim women cannot preach religion in the interior areas as per Islamic tenets, according to an Urdu-language daily. Roznama Munsif reported that the Dar-ul-Ifta (the department that issues edicts) of Darul Uloom Deoband said that only Muslim men can preach Islam in the interior areas of the country.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/34606.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband Fatwa: Donating Blood Is Un-Islamic
The prominent Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband in India has come up with yet another fatwa, this one stating that the donation of blood and body parts is haram (prohibited in Islam), according to an Urdu-language daily. The fatwa, issued in response to a question numbered 27466, said, "Donating blood or body parts is not permitted in Islam, as we (human beings) are not the owners of our bodies."
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/32486.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband: Saying 'Talaq… Talaq… Talaq' To Divorce Wife On Cellphone Is Valid
India's leading seminary, Darul Uloom Deoband, said in its latest fatwa that the word talaq uttered thrice by a Muslim man to his wife on a mobile phone will be considered valid as a divorce, according to an Indian daily. "The fatwa was given by Darul Ifta... of Dar-ul-Uloom Deoband, in reply to a query by a man," said the report in The Times of India daily. Darul is the fatwa department of Darul Uloom Deoband seminary.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/32143.htm
Indian Muslim Women's Group Challenges Darul Uloom Deoband Seminary's Authority To Issue Fatwas
A Muslim women's advocacy group in India has criticized frequent fatwas issued by the Darul Uloom Deoband, a leading Indian Islamic seminary, said an Indian website. In an open letter to the Darul Uloom Deoband, the women's group, Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA), challenged the Deoband's authority to issue fatwas, according to a report on the Indian website ummid.com.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/32389.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband: Use Of Loudspeaker To Awaken People For Sahri (Pre-Fast Meal) Is Un-Islamic
Darul Uloom Deoband, the world's second-largest Islamic seminary in India, has issued a fatwa calling the use of loudspeakers to awaken Muslims for Sahri (meal eaten before sunrise during Ramadan) un-Islamic, according to an Urdu-language daily. Roznama Rashtriya Sahara reported that the fatwa also described recitation of Naat on loudspeaker at Sahri time as un-Islamic. The Naat is a poem recited to express love of Islam's Prophet Muhammad.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/29747.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband Slammed For Fatwa Banning Women Qazis (Islamic Judges)
A major Muslim women's pressure group in India has slammed the Darul Uloom Deoband, the second largest Islamic seminary in the world after Cairo's Al-Azhar university, for its fatwa declaring that women cannot become a qazi (Islamic judge), according to an Urdu-language daily. Shaista Amber, president of the All India Muslim Women Personal Law Board, said that appointing Muslim women as qazis to voluntarily established tribunals on the basis of their ability is a good move and will send a strong message to the community.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/29240.htm
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Darul Uloom Deoband: Talking To Fiancé On Phone Is Haram (Forbidden)
Darul Uloom Deoband, the world's second largest Islamic seminary in India, has issued a fatwa declaring that talking to one's fiancé/fiancée on the phone for no reason is haram (prohibited in Islam), according to a Hindi-language website. "Talking to one's fiancé/fiancée on the phone without any reason, even after the engagement, is prohibited in Islam," the fatwa issued by the Darul Uloom Deoband declared.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/29213.htm
India's Darul Uloom Deoband Slammed For Fatwa Barring Adolescent Girls From Riding Bicycles
Prominent Islamic clerics in India have slammed the world-famous Indian Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband for its fatwa barring adolescent girls from riding bicycles, according to an Indian newspaper. The Darul Uloom Deoband had issued a fatwa prohibiting girls aged 13 and above from riding bicycles. According to a report in the Daily News & Analysis newspaper, Mufti Arshad Faruqi, chairman of the Darul Uloom Deoband's fatwa department, said that the edict was issued in keeping with the ideals of Islam.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/28718.htm
Indian Islamic Scholars Question Relevance Of Fatwas
Prominent scholars of Islam in India have questioned the relevance of fatwas issued by the country's leading Islamic seminary, Darul Uloom Deoband, according to an Indian website. Islamic scholar Maulana Wahiduddin Khan said that it is not proper to issue fatwas "on every issue," according to a report on the website of the Indian weekly magazine Outlook. Khan said: "It is essential to understand that these fatwas are merely a point of view, and it depends on an individual whether to follow them or not."
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/28478.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband: Man's Marriage To Stepmother Is ''Rape''
Darul Uloom Deoband, the second largest Islamic seminary in the world and India's largest, which is situated near New Delhi, has declared that the marriage of a 23-year-old man to his stepmother is rape, and is null and void, reported an Urdu-language daily. The seminary declared that such a relationship will be treated as ''rape'' and that the crime is punishable under the Islamic shari'a law, said the Urdu-language daily Roznama Siasat. The seminary's opinion follows an incident involving one Raunaq Ali who tied the knot with his 38-year-old stepmother Husno Begum in the Goripur village of the Baghpat district near New Delhi.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/28084.htm
Indian Muslims Urged To Stay Away From Reformist Cleric Maulana Waheeduddin Khan's Teachings
A prominent Islamic scholar of the Darul Uloom Deoband, a renowned Islamic seminary in India, has asked Muslims to keep away from the speeches and writings of Maulana Waheeduddin Khan, according to an Urdu-language daily. Maulana Shah Alam of the Darul Uloom Deoband criticized Maulana Waheeduddin Khan for having a ''soft corner [spot]'' for Qadianiat, i.e. the beliefs of Ahmadi Muslims, according to a report in the Urdu-language daily Roznama Sahafat.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/28037.htm
Indian Clerics Accused Of Launching ''Gender Jihad'' Against Women; Call To Fight ''Fatwa Factory''
Indian Muslim intellectuals have challenged the present framework in which fatwas are being issued by Islamic clerics in India, in light of recent fatwas forbidding women from taking up jobs, according to an Urdu-language daily. Javed Anand, co-editor of the magazine Communalism Combat, accused Indian clerics of launching a ''gender jihad'' against women by disallowing women from jobs. His statement comes amid a series of fatwas issued by the Darul Uloom Deoband, a leading Islamic seminary, against women's participation in public life.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/27391.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband Bans Indian Muslims From Working In Banks
The Darul Uloom Deoband, the second-largest Islamic seminary in the world, has issued a fatwa against Muslims working in banks, describing it as a violation of Islamic law, according to a Pakistani daily. The fatwa was issued last week but made public on Friday, said Mufti Shakeel of the "Fatwa" department of the Darul Uloom Deoband. Darul Uloom Deoband is situated in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/27113.htm
Indian Clerics' Fatwa On Working Muslim Women: ''Do Not Mix With Male Colleagues''
Several Islamic clerics and religious leaders, including those from the Nadwatul Ulema, a leading Islamic seminary, have expressed support for a fatwa against working Muslim women and against the dyeing of hair, according to a Hindi-language daily. The fatwa, issued by the clerics of Darul Uloom Deoband, a world-famous Islamic seminary, said that it is unlawful for Muslim women to interact and mix with men in offices without a hijab (veil), according to a report on the website of the Hindu language newspaper Dainik Bhaskar.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/27002.htm
India's Darul Uloom Deoband Says Embracing Islam For Marriage Goes Against Islamic Shari'a
Darul Uloom Deoband, the world-famous Islamic seminary in India, has said that conversion to Islam for the sake of marriage goes against Islamic shari'a, according to an Indian news agency. Mufti Ahsan Kasmi, deputy director of the Fatwa Department of Darul Uloom Deoband, said a person converting to Islam for the purpose of getting married goes ''against Islamic Shari'a.'' According to a report carried by the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency, the ruling came after a Hindu man from the Garhi Pukhta village in the Muzaffarnagar district of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh said that he wanted to convert to Islam in order to marry his domestic help.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/26904.htm
India's Darul Uloom Deoband Issues Fatwa Against Acting And Modelling
Darul Uloom Deoband, a prominent Islamic seminary in India, has issued a fatwa that describes women's modelling and acting as ''un-Islamic'' and ''a serious offense'' under Islamic shari'a, according to an Urdu-language daily. "The veil is an important part of religion. Unveiling is illegal as per shari'a. Modelling and acting in movies are a serious offense under Islamic law since women who model or act in movies not only remove their veils but also make an exhibition of their bodies," said Maulana Abdul Khalique, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Darul Uloom Deoband.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/26802.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband Urges Islamic Nations To Oppose Burqa Ban In Europe
Darul Uloom Deoband, the spiritual home for the Deobandi school of thought in Islam, has asked Muslim countries to strongly oppose the ban on the burqa in Europe, according to a Hindi-language daily. Urging Muslim nations to work towards having the ban on the burqa in Belgium lifted, Maulana Abdul Khalique Madrasi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Darul Uloom Deoband, said: "It is unfortunate that Islamic countries have not opposed the law by European countries curbing Muslim women from wearing the veil which is an integral part of our religion.''
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/26833.htm
Darul Uloom Deoband Issues Fatwa Against Muslim Women Modelling
Darul Uloom Deoband, the world's second largest Islamic seminary in India, has issued a fatwa against Muslim women modelling, according to a Hindi-language daily. The newspaper Dainik Hindustan reports that the seminary, the second-largest such Islamic institution of learning after Cairo's Al-Azhar university, said that Muslim women's exhibiting their bodies is against Islamic law. The fatwa was issued jointly by prominent clerics Mufti Habibur Rahman, Mufti Mahmood Hasan, Mufti Fakhrul Islam, Mufti Zainul Islam and Mufti Waqar Ali, all from Darul Uloom Deoband.
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/26148.htm
Indian Seminary Says No Problem In Allying With Shi'ites In Current Times
Darul Uloom Deoband, a world-famous Islamic seminary near New Delhi, has issued a fatwa saying that there is no problem in forming an alliance with Shi'ites to forge Muslim unity in the present conditions, according to an Urdu-language daily. Replying to a query of Malik Ashtar, a Radio Tehran representative, the Darul Uloom Deoband said, "Though the faith and practices of Shi'ites are quite different from that of Ahl-e-Sunnat [Sunni Muslims], still there are some possibilities of unity between the sects.''
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/22629.htm
Indian Islamic Seminary: Homosexuality Is An Offense Under Shari'a
Darul Uloom Deoband, the internationally renowned Islamic seminary situated near New Delhi, has declared homosexuality unacceptable in Islam, according to an Indian daily. Maulana Abdul Khaliq Madrasi, the seminary's vice chancellor, said: ''Homosexuality is an offense under shari'a law and haram (prohibited) in Islam.''
http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/17752.htm
Indian Islamic Seminary Disagrees With Al-Azhar University On Burqa, But Says: It's Ok To Shun Burqa In All-Women Classroom, But Not In Public
Darul Uloom Deoband, the largest Islamic seminary in India, has stated that it is all right for girls to shun the burqa inside all-women classrooms, but not in public, according to an Indian website. Indian clerics are debating the recent ban by Cairo's Al-Azhar University on wearing the niqab on its female campuses. Darul Uloom Deoband, situated near New Delhi, is the second largest institution of Islamic learning after Al-Azhar University.
