Fatwa against participation of Muslims Women in Employment

Current issue of EPW (May 22-28, 2010) carries an article by Yoginder Sikand on Deoband’s Fatwas on Women which discussed the recent fatwa issued by the Deoband Dar ul-Uloom’s recent fatwa againt Muslim women working outside the home and a host of other women-related fatwas close almost all sources of employment, which even extends to participation of muslim women in education. The said article can be downloaded from here.

Separate from the issue of validity of the fatwa and its connection with the economic realities of the Muslim community, it is pertinent to note that absence of exclusive educational facilities for Muslim girls has been discussed in Sachar Commitee Report as one of the reasons for why Muslim women do not participate in proportionate numbers in schools/colleges.