‘Like Gold Kept Safely In A Box’: Islamic Cleric Says Women Should Remain At Home

Islamic cleric Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad has sparked controversy after saying women should remain inside their homes, comparing them to gold ornaments stored safely in a box.

Ahmad, also known as Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliyar, made the remarks at the Hubbul Rasool conference in Kochi. He argued that Islam prescribed purdah to protect women and claimed their participation in public life could cause “great destruction”,  news agency PTI quoted him as saying.

“Women should remain confined within their homes. They should not enter the public sphere. The Holy Quran says so,” he said.

His comments came amid criticism of a recent circular stating that women should not be present on public platforms. Several women political leaders have spoken against the directive.

Ahmad backed his argument by describing how a gold necklace is kept inside a cupboard, box and wrapping before being shown to a customer.

“If the necklace has to retain its beauty, it has to be kept safely inside a box,” he said.

He contrasted jewellery with stone grinders, which, he said, could be left beside a road even as people walked around or stepped over them. A necklace left similarly exposed would be repeatedly touched, damaging its appearance and reducing its value, he claimed.

“If women are brought out into the public sphere like this, it will lead to great destruction. It is because of this that Islam prescribed the purdah system for women,” Kanthapuram said.

The cleric maintained that such restrictions were not intended to diminish women but to protect their dignity.

Kanthapuram also argued that Islam had historically elevated women’s status. Referring to female infanticide in pre-Islamic Arabia, he said Islam prohibited the killing of girls and gave women inheritance and property rights.

“Islam gave women a great position,” he said.

He added that religious scholars, particularly those associated with the Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama, had taught this position for around a century.

The Kanthapuram faction of the Samastha, a prominent body of Sunni-Shafi scholars in Kerala, had recently said religious celebrations and programmes should remain within prescribed boundaries.

Responding to organisations that questioned his authority, Kanthapuram said trained scholars had a responsibility to speak about their religion.

“We have studied the religion. Therefore, it is our duty to say this. We will say it, and we will continue to say it. Nobody can stop it,” he said.

Who Is Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad?

Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad is an influential Kerala-based Sunni scholar and general secretary of the All India Sunni Jamiyyathul Ulama. He is also associated with the Kanthapuram faction of the Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama.

His followers widely describe him as the “Grand Mufti of India”, although the designation is not an official title conferred by the government. A mufti is an Islamic legal scholar qualified to interpret religious law and issue non-binding opinions known as fatwas.

The remarks comes days after Rahul Gandhi urged the women to "smash the patriarchy" and attacked 'Manusmriti'.