Excerpt from “Ahkam o Masail” by Shaykh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbani ◈
❖ Question:
What is the ruling regarding observing ḥijāb (veil) from one’s son-in-law (damād)?
❖ Answer:
A son-in-law (damād) is included among the maḥārim (non-marriageable relatives) — i.e., those men whom a woman is permanently forbidden to marry according to Islamic law. This ruling is based on the consensus (ijmāʿ) of the scholars.
Allah ﷻ has stated in the Qur’an:
﴿وَأُمَّهَاتُ نِسَائِكُمْ﴾
“And the mothers of your wives.”
[Surah an-Nisāʾ: 23]
This part of the verse makes it explicitly clear that a wife’s mother (i.e., the mother-in-law) is permanently ḥarām (forbidden) for her husband (i.e., son-in-law) to marry under all circumstances.
Therefore, based on this verse, a wife’s mother, grandmother, and maternal grandmother are all prohibited for the husband — and by extension, the son-in-law is maḥram to his wife’s mother.
❖ Conclusion:
There is no need for the mother-in-law to observe ḥijāb in front of her son-in-law. She may:
✔ Sit and eat with him.
✔ Travel with him when needed.
If she does so, it contributes to maintaining affection and love within the family and is considered a more virtuous and preferred approach in such family interactions.
