Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

asak,my question is.......my father is a step-father of mine,i.e my mother had a second marriage, and we all live together now, so should i have hijaab in front of him or rather should i parda in front of him..............and i also have one brother from my present father, he is considered my brother or he is gair maharoom for me 

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Answer:

Hijab from step father brother

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your Question: .......my father is a step-father of mine,i.e my mother had a second marriage, and we all live together now, so should i have hijaab in front of him or rather should i parda in front of him..............

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 23:

23 Prohibited to you (for marriage) are: your mother, daughters, sisters, father's sisters, mother's sisters, brother's daughters, sister's daughters, foster-mothers (who gave you suck), foster-sisters, your wives' mothers, your step-daughters under your guardianship born of your wives to whom ye have gone in no prohibition if ye have not gone in, (those who have been) wives of your sons proceeding from your loins, and two sisters in wedlock at one and the same time except for what is past; for Allah is Oft-Forgiving Most Merciful.

If your mother has married another person, that person, although he is not your biological father is your step-father, and the marriage of your mother to him will develop a ‘mehram’ and sacred relationship between you and him; thus there is absolutely no obligation upon a step-daughter in Shariah to adorn the ‘hijaab’ in the presence of her step-father.

Your Question:..............and i also have one brother from my present father, he is considered my brother or he is gair maharoom for me 

If the brother is from the womb of the same mother, or from the loins of the same father, then indeed he will be considered your ‘mehram’; but if the brother is born from a different mother or a different father, he will be considered a non-mehram, and all the restrictions which apply to a non-mehram in Shariah would apply to him.

Your brother from your present (step) father is your step-brother, and because he is born from a mother and a father completely distinct from yours, he will remain a ‘non-mehram’ unto you.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan