IUML leader clarifies daughter’s remarks on women entering mosques

Malappuram (Kerala), Dec 7 (PTI) Indian Union Muslim League leader Sayyid Munavvar Ali Shihab Thangal on Sunday issued a clarification regarding his daughter’s recent remarks about women entering mosques.

In a Facebook post, he responded after his 16-year-old daughter, Fatima Nargis, said at a public event that the practice of restricting women from entering mosques was cultural and should be changed.

Thangal said he was issuing the clarification as a father, after she faced an unexpected question on a subject related to Islamic jurisprudence, which requires deep scholarly understanding.

“We fully realise that the response she gave does not align with the mainstream Muslim belief system in Kerala or with the established conclusions of the scholarly community,” he wrote.

He said her reaction should be seen merely as an impulsive comment by a child who has not yet gained sufficient awareness or formal learning on the matter, adding that it was not a well-considered opinion.

“On a matter that has already been clearly and comprehensively defined by the traditional Muslim scholarly community in Kerala, I wish to correct and clarify her response here — with complete responsibility as a father,” Thangal said.

Meanwhile, IUML state president Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal told reporters that the remark was made by a child and there should be no attempt to create controversy over it. PTI TBA SSK