Women beauticians get fatwa shocker

Famous beautician Shehnaaz Hussain and many of her ilk may not like the latest fatwa (religious decree) issued by the Darul Uloom in Deoband.

In yet another fatwa, which is likely to evoke a sharp reaction from the womenfolk in the country, the well known Islamic seminary has said that the Sharia (islamic law) did not allow Muslim women to run beauty parlours.

The fatwa has been issued by the Darul Ifta (department of fatwa of the seminary) in response to a query in this regard a few days back. It says that adornment is not allowed in the sharia.

“The work in the name of adornment that is performed in a beauty parlour...all or most of them are unlawful as per the Sharia. And it is unlawful to do an unlawful job by oneself or get it done by someone else under one’s patronage by employment and take compensation for it,” states the fatwa.

Senior cleric of the seminary Mufti Arif defended the fatwa when pointed out that Shenaaz Hussain had made it big in the profession and was famous across the country. “What is wrong as per the sharia will be wrong for every one even if the person involved is big or small,” he added.The seminary has issued a series of fatwas in the past few days on issues of marriage and divorce. It recently said that a divorce by a man in an inebriated state was valid in the eye of sharia. Another fatwa prohibited the muslim youths from falling in love with a non-muslim girl and befriending any girl, who is a stranger.

Earlier it had issued a fatwa saying video recording was no evidence of a muslim marriage in the eye of the sharia. The seminary has also said that body scanning was not un-islamic and the muslims should make attempts to get themselves exempted from the same.

The fatwas by the seminary have evoked sharp reactions from different quarters, including from a section of the muslim clergy. “Such fatwas only undermine their authority among the people...times are changing and these fatwas are of little value for the common muslims,” says Zeenat Naaz, former chairperson of Deoband municipal council.