Answer
Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
1- It is permitted for a Muslim man to marry a woman from among the People of the Book. However, it is totally prohibited for a Muslim man to marry an atheist (e.g. a Sikh woman).
2- Islam does not accept conversion for other objectives such as marriage. Thus, a Muslim man is not allowed to marry a Sikh woman unless she willingly accepts Islam through genuine conversion and not just for the purpose of marrying a Muslim.
In his response to your question, Dr. Muzammil H. Siddiqi, Former President of the Fiqh Council of North America, states:
Indeed, it is required for a Muslim man to have a Sikh woman convert to Islam before he marries her. Muslim men should marry Muslim women. If a non-Muslim woman accepts Islam, then it is permissible to marry her.
All Muslim jurists are unanimous on that the Quran’s permission for Muslims to marry the women of the People of the Book (Ahl Al-Kitab) is applicable to Jewish and Christian women only and it cannot be extended to any other group.
Muslim men are allowed to marry Jewish or Christian women, but even this permission is conditional. The woman must be of good moral character. She should also agree that her children born in this marriage would be raised as a Muslim. If there is any doubt or danger that this will not happen, then it is not allowed to have this type of marriage.
Moreover, Dr. Sano Koutoub Moustapha, Professor of fiqh and its principles at the International Islamic University, Malaysia, who states:
A Muslim man is not allowed to marry a Hindu or Sikh woman before she converts to Islam. This is based on the Qur’anic verse: {Wed not idolatresses till they believe; for lo! a believing bondwoman is better than an idolatress though she please you; and give not your daughters in marriage to idolaters till they believe, for lo! a believing slave is better than an idolater though he please you. These invite unto the Fire, and Allah invites unto the Garden and unto forgiveness by His grace and expounds thus His revelations to humankind that haply they may remember.} (Al-Baqarah 2:221)
Having clarified the above, I can say that the best way to marry such a lady is that she converts to Islam by declaring and pronouncing shahadah sincerely and honestly. I do not see any problem of doing so, bearing in mind that it is her right to choose her religion.
However, Islam does even allow her to convert in secret just for the purpose of marrying a Muslim man.
Moreover, it is very important to note that Islam pays great attention to the importance of conviction for those who embrace it. A Muslim is never supposed to force a non-Muslim lady to embrace Islam.
Allah says, {There is no compulsion in religion. True guidance has become distinct from error. But whoever renounces false gods and believes in Allah has grasped the strong handhold that will never break. And Allah is Hearing, Knowing.} (Al-Baqarah 2:256)
Once she accepts Islam out of conviction, a Muslim man is allowed to marry her. Before conversion to Islam, a Muslim man is not allowed under any circumstances to marry her.
Read also:
Does Marrying Non-Muslim Nullify Woman’s Islam?
Why Muslim Woman Cannot Marry Non-Muslim Man
Almighty Allah knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.