Darul Uloom Deoband issues notice, asks students not to shave beards

Prominent Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur has expelled four students for either totally shaving or trimming their beards. The institute also issued a notice at the reception Monday warning the students of immediate expulsion if they experimented with their beards.

Islamic educational institution Darul Uloom Deoband has issued an order asking its students not to shave beards. No student enrolled at Darul Uloom Deoband may shave their hair, according to a directive issued on Monday by the department's in-charge, Maulana Hussain Ahmed.

“If he does so he will be expelled. Apart from this, admission will not be given to the students coming for admission in the institution after cutting their beards,” it said. Four students were dismissed earlier on February 6 for shaving their beards, according to sources at the school. They claimed that Darul Uloom Deoband had declared that shaving one's goatee is "haram" (inadmissible) in Islam three years prior.

The notice mentioned that the institute expelled the four students two weeks ago for not following Islamic norms regarding beard and that it would not be lenient with any student who attempts to violate the norms.

The expelled students sent a written explanation to the school's ruling body and promised never to do it again, but the school refused it and is now unlikely to let them sit for the upcoming annual examinations.

Maulana Mufti Asad Kasmi of Jamia Shaikhul Hind in Deoband town justified the removal of four pupils by arguing that stringent measures should be implemented to ensure that no one dares to violate the Sunnah (the way of the Prophet).

When asked, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahali, a senior member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board and the Shahar Qazi of Lucknow, told media, "Beard-keeping is 'Sunnah' (practise) in Islam because Rasool Allah Muhammad used to maintain one. A individual will be deemed culpable if they once had a beard but subsequently got rid of it. In Islam, a beard has a distinct meaning."

(With PTI inputs)