Question:
What should one do if they have to stay late at work with a co-worker of the opposite sex to complete a project?
Does the rule, “One shouldn’t be by themselves in the company of non-Mahram” apply here? Why or why not?
Answer:
A strange male and strange female cannot be left alone in such a room in which there is no third person that can prevent them from doing anything unlawful or such a room which is closed. If the room is open or there are other people around then the ruling that prevents them being alone which is found in the Hadith does not apply here.
And Allah Ta’ala knows best
Mufti Muhammad Ashraf
Darul Iftaa
Jameah Mahmoodiyah
Springs
02 February 2005
22 Thul Hijjah 1425