Question: Can women lead a prayer? Is there something explicitly forbidding women leading men in prayers? Someone has quoted that the Prophet (sws) appointed Ummi Warqa to lead men in prayers? Is that true? 
    Answer: The Sunnah established by the Prophet (sws) in congregational prayers is that only men can lead a prayer. 
    Dr Muhammad Hamidullah, a famous Muslim scholar has tried to prove through certain indications found in a Hadith that the Prophet (sws) had appointed Ummi Warqah to lead men in prayers. These indications are quite weak and do not substantiate the claim. Moreover, a Hadith which contradicts an established Sunnah cannot be accepted.