The imamate of a pigeon-flying imam whose wife does not observe hijab

Question

An imam openly engages in pigeon-flying and does not listen: what is the ruling of the Sacred Law regarding the prayer — will the prayer behind him be valid or not? And what are the conditions of hijab in the Sacred Law for the imam’s wife? Kindly write about this too.

Answer

If the respected imam keeps pigeons as a hobby and also flies them, then he has merely done something unbecoming, on account of which the imamate is not impaired. But if he flies them for winning and losing [stakes], then his imamate is makruh until he repents and reforms himself. Hijab must be observed from every man with whom marriage [for the woman] is permissible.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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