In a stunning show of internal pressure on Iran’s ruling establishment, more than half of Iran’s lawmakers have publicly accused the judiciary of failing to enforce the nation’s strict hijab laws, warning that the country is witnessing a dangerous rise in what they call “abnormal behavior” and open defiance of Islamic dress codes.
The explosive criticism — delivered in a formal letter signed by 155 of the parliament’s 290 members — signals escalating tensions inside Iran’s political class as women across major cities increasingly reject compulsory veiling. State media reported the move Tuesday, highlighting the growing divide between hard-liners demanding stricter enforcement and a society that is visibly pushing back.
“Judiciary Cannot Remain Passive,” Lawmakers Warn
According to the lawmakers’ letter addressed to Chief Justice Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, Iran’s judiciary bears “direct responsibility” for failing to uphold the Islamic penal code, which mandates that women must cover their hair, neck and body in public.
“The judiciary cannot remain passive,” the letter reads. “A lack of determination to enforce parliamentary law has paved the way for nudity, non-compliance with the hijab, and other abnormal behavior.”
In Iran, the term “nudity” refers not to literal nakedness but to clothing perceived as inappropriate — including uncovered hair or Western-style outfits. Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, strict dress codes have been legally enforced, reaffirmed by a 2014 fatwa from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei requiring women to conceal everything except their face and hands.
Women in Tehran Defy the Rules — Openly
Despite these long-standing restrictions, large numbers of women — especially in cities like Tehran — now move freely in public without headscarves, sporting dyed hair, jeans, sneakers and contemporary fashion that defies clerical expectations.
President Masoud Pezeshkian’s government last year refused to ratify a parliamentary bill that would have drastically increased penalties for women who violate hijab rules. Pezeshkian, who took office in July 2024, insists women “cannot be forced” to wear the hijab — a statement that enraged many ultraconservatives.
His office was attacked last week by hard-liners after publishing a photo of a young Iranian woman — killed during the June war with Israel — whose hair was partially visible beneath a casual cap.
Post-Mahsa Amini Era Still Shaping Iran’s Politics
The debate over hijab enforcement remains one of the most explosive political issues in Iran since the nationwide uprising sparked by the 2022 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in morality-police custody after being accused of improper dress. The protests, led primarily by young women, challenged the ideological core of the Islamic Republic and weakened public compliance with religious mandates.
Today’s parliamentary backlash suggests that Iran’s establishment is once again struggling to contain a society becoming more defiant — and a new president unwilling to govern through coercion alone.
As the cultural battle intensifies, Iran’s internal divisions are growing sharper, raising questions about how far the regime is willing to go to reassert control over the nation’s women.