ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS
- In India, “The Kerala Government’s free-for-women Priyadarshini bus scheme has come under scrutiny over passenger identification and possible misuse… social reformer A.P. Ahmed Master suggested a ban on niqab and burqa on board.”
- “Malaysia is seeking to elevate its economic partnership with Korea beyond traditional manufacturing and trade by positioning itself as a long-term strategic partner in high-value industries…[including] the fast-growing global halal economy.”
- “The UAE is targeting Dh2.56 trillion in local Islamic finance assets by 2031 under a national strategy that also seeks to strengthen legal and Shari’ah certainty and protect customers’ rights.”
- In Lebanon, “The Fatwa House has warned of legal action against anyone defaming the Grand Mufti of Lebanon or the institution.”
- In Brunei, the Ministry of Religious Affairs is “implementing a strategy focused on four key areas to further expanding dakwah through digital platforms to engage younger generations and address the spread of unauthenticated religious information on social media.”
- “Wealthy Middle Easterners are drawing on English law to sidestep Islamic inheritance rules that disadvantage daughters.”
- “President William Ruto has announced a Sharia-compliant financing option under the government’s Affordable Housing Programme, allowing Muslim Kenyans to buy homes through arrangements that comply with Islamic law.”
CASES, FATWĀS, LEGISLATION ON ISLAMIC LAW
- Egypt‘s new Personal Status Code “has united feminists and fathers’ rights advocates in shared rejection, both arguing it fails to address how marital contributions are recognised when a marriage ends. At the heart of that failure is a concept known as Haq Al-Kadd Wal-Sa’aya: the right earned through toil and effort.”
- In Uganda, Deputy Mufti Sheikh Muhammad Ali Waiswa and Uganda Muslim Supreme Council National Chairperson Muhammadi Lubega Kisambira “rejected claims that Islam permits the kidnapping of people for ransom and the subsequent killing of captives, describing such acts as serious crimes that have no basis in the teachings of the Holy Quran and Sunnah.”
- Amid a rising tide of anti-LGBTQ sentiment, “Indonesia’s top Islamic clerical body has warned men not to wear ‘women’s clothing’ for Independence Day festivities despite a long-standing tradition of men in dresses playing football as part of the annual fun… [as] such behaviour was ‘haram’ or forbidden.”
- In India, “The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea challenging a Gujarat High Court order that upheld the rejection of waqf suits for non-payment of court fees.”
- “A seminar was held to mark the 20th anniversary of the drafting of the Maldives’ Penal Code.“
- In Malaysia, the “state government has tabled the State Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2026, aimed at strengthening the legal position of Islam and the Syariah judiciary by formally recognising the Syariah Courts under Selangor’s highest law. For more content and context on Islamic law in Malaysia, consult our Editor-in-Chief Professor Intisar Rabb’s “Legislation and Regulation of Islamic Law in Malaysia” and its appended resource roundup.
UPCOMING EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Events:
- Workshop: Archival Abundances and Silences in Islamic Studies, Princeton University, October 2–3, 2026
- Conference: Ruling Bodies: Islamic Law, Embodiment, and the Anthropology of Normativity, The Institute for Islamic Theology, Paderborn University, November 6–7, 2026
- Conference: Middle East Studies Association Annual Meeting, Boston, MA, November 21–24, 2026
- Conference: The Institutional Embedding of Shiʿi Imams: Kinship, Caliphs, Courts and Companions (700-900), University of Leiden, January 13–15, 2027
- Conference: Rupture or Continuity in Sharīʿa: (De)Colonizing Sharīʿa? International Conference, Centre for Islamic Studies (ISAM), Istanbul, Turkey, June 9–11, 2027
Opportunities:
- Award: Student Travel Award, Association for Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Studies, September 1, 2026
- Call for Papers: Legal Research & Analysis, September 29, 2026
- Call for Papers: Trends in Intellectual Property Research, September 30, 2026