.... Sunni and Deobandi clerics support the seven dargahs' decision. "The sharia does not allow intermingling of men and women at any place. The visit of women to graves is forbidden.
It is welcome that the dargahs are following this rule," said Maulana Athar Ali, a Sunni cleric. Senior Deobandi cleric Maulana Mahmood Daryabadi echoes this. "They should have done it much earlier. I am glad they are now following a rule sanctioned by the sharia," he said.
But liberal Muslims are outraged. "This is shocking and shameful. This is a regressive step that will further fuel Islamophobia and encourage the detractors of Islam to allege that the religion practices discrimination against women," said Javed Anand of Muslims for Secular Democracy (MSD). [THE TIMES OF INDIA] Read more
