Homayoun Katouzian’s Letter to Khamenei: Political Insistence on Mandatory Hijab Increases State and Nation Conflict

Homayoun Katouzian’s Letter to Khamenei: Political Insistence on Mandatory Hijab Increases State and Public Conflict

Homayoun Katouzian, a historian and Iranian professor at the University of Oxford in Britain, has criticized in a short open letter to Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, the renewed emphasis on enforcing mandatory hijab in public places, saying do not let political insistence on mandatory hijab further deepen the conflict between the state and the public.

Addressing Mr. Khamenei, Homayoun Katouzian argued that there is no consensus among Islamic jurists and scholars regarding mandatory hijab, as some of them believe that hijab is not obligatory. Furthermore, the failure to observe the obligations of prayer and fasting, which are essential in Islam, is not considered a crime from a religious or legal standpoint. Moreover, the majority of people do not support mandatory hijab.

In recent weeks, since the official start of the Iranian police’s plan to enforce mandatory hijab, many Islamic scholars, legal experts, and prominent figures in Iranian society have criticized the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic for his insistence on mandatory hijab.