Prominent Muslim leaders have strongly condemned a recent Supreme Court ruling granting children born out of wedlock the right to inherit property from their fathers.
The leaders called the verdict a violation of Islamic law and an erosion of religious freedoms protected under the Constitution.
In a joint statement, representatives from leading Muslim religious bodies, legal scholars, and community organisations said the decision, rendered on June 30, is a "direct affront to the Islamic faith", and urged Parliament to intervene by enacting legislative safeguards that protect Muslim Personal Law from secular reinterpretation.
“We urge Parliament, especially Muslim representatives and members of the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee, to move swiftly and introduce legislative safeguards to protect Muslim Personal Law from erosion and misrepresentation by secular courts,” the statement read.
The ruling by the Supreme Court upheld a prior decision by
the Court of Appeal, which had affirmed that all children — regardless of the
marital status of their parents — must be treated equally under Kenyan law,
particularly in matters of inheritance and succession.
Citing the constitutional principle of non-discrimination, the court determined that children born outside of marriage have equal inheritance rights and cannot be excluded from their father’s estate solely on the basis of their birth status.
But the ruling has triggered strong backlash from Muslim leaders, who maintain that Islamic inheritance laws, which distinguish between marital and non-marital offspring, are an integral part of the Muslim faith and are fully protected under Article 32 of the 2010 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion and belief.
“This ruling was made under the guise of equality and justice but it dismantles core values of our faith,” said SUPKEM Chairman Al Haji Hassan Ole Naado, one of the signatories.
Other signatories included Sheikh Abdullahi Abdi of the National Muslim Leaders Forum (NAMLEF), Sheikh Hassan Ali Amin of the Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya (CIPK), Abdulrahman Wandati of the Muslim Consultative Council, and representatives from Jamia Mosque, Nairobi.
The leaders emphasised that the Muslim community has never sought to impose Sharia-based rulings on non-Muslims, but also made it clear they would not accept rulings that compromise or override their religious tenets.
“Muslims in Kenya have never and will never impose our religious rulings on others — but we will not accept the imposition of rulings that dismantle our faith, values, and practices,” the statement read.
They argued that secular courts should respect the autonomy of religious communities in matters where personal laws and religious doctrines are applicable, especially in family and succession matters among adherents of Islam
