Question:
Two frum men – Reuven & Shimon – are taking a test in a room where there are two females (one of the females is also a test taker, and the other is the proctor). Reuven finishes the test before Shimon does. Is Reuven permitted to leave the room, even though this will cause Shimon to be in yichud with two women, which is prohibited? The door of the testing room is closed (but not locked) in order that the test takers should not be disturbed by people from outside. There is a notice on the door to the room saying, “Do not disturb/ testing in progress.” Therefore, no one has permission to enter the room.
Is there any heter for Reuven to leave the room and cause a fellow Jew to transgress the prohibition of yichud, or is Reuven required to wait until Shimon finishes the test and then they should both leave together?
Answer:
You are very right and perceptive! It would be lifnei iver for Reuven to leave Shimon if it would indeed be Yichud. However in this particular situation, and the way it was described, I’m not so sure it yichud because there may be people that won’t regard the sign, such as workers or administation, or people that already took the test but forgot something. they may come back to get what they left etc.
