Question
1. Is it permissible for male teachers and female teachers to sit together in meetings without any barrier in between?
2. Are male teachers and female teachers allowed to socialize with one another outside of the madrasah hours by going to restaurants etc or have friendly chit-chat and joke with one another?
3. Is it permissible for a male and female teacher to be alone with one another in any part of the madrasah building such as an office or madrasah room, or a corridor where they cannot be seen by anyone else? Is it allowed for a male teacher to be alone with a female teacher in a room with a window where they can be seen by others or where there is a cctv camera?
Answer
1. Intermingling of sexes is totally impermissible in Islam, therefore it is impermissible for them to sit together in meetings etc.
2. It is impermissible for the male and female Ustaadhs to socialize outside the Madrasah, and to go to restaurants etc. together, and to have friendly conversations, unless they are Mahram to one another.
3. It is not permissible for a male and female teacher to be alone together anywhere, unless they are Mahram to each other. Nabi Sallallahu Alayhi Wa Sallam has stated in a Hadith:
لا يخلون رجل بامرأة الا كان ثالثهما الشيطان
No man is ever in seclusion with a woman except that Shaitaan is the third (one amongst them).
Checked and Approved By:
Mufti Muhammed Saeed Motara Saheb D.B.
References
فتاوى خليلية ج ١ ص ٣٣٥ طبع سهارنبور
Fataawa Mahmoodiyya pg.473 vol.27
اسلام اور جدید معاشی مسائل ج ۳ ص ۳۱۰