"AND WOMEN HAVE RIGHTS SIMILAR TO WHAT THEY OWE AS RECOGNIZED, THOUGH FOR MEN THERE IS A STEP ABOVE THEM. AND ALLAH IS MIGHTY, WISE." (SURAH AL-BAQARAH: 228)

Part 2

While the Holy Quran makes it abundantly clear that in terms of the injunctions of the Shariah and in matters of eternal reward and punishment men and women are absolutely equal, except for some situations where the injunctions apply differently to men and women which are expressly mentioned, however, the address is generally to men and masculine nouns have been used. When Sayyidah Umm Salmah RAA mentioned this to the Holy Prophet ﷺ the following verse of the Surah Al-Ahzab was revealed:

انَّ ٱلۡمُسۡلِمِينَ وَٱلۡمُسۡلِمَـٰتِ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنَـٰتِ وَٱلۡقَـٰنِتِينَ وَٱلۡقَـٰنِتَـٰتِ ۔۔۔ (سوہ الاحزاب: ۳۵) 

"Submitting men and submitting women, believing men and believing women, obedient men and obedient women..." (Surah Al-Ahzab: 35) 

In this verse women were clearly and expressly identified along with men making it clear that in the matters of obedience to Allah and His worship, and in being close to Him and His approval, the status of women is no less than men.

From Ma'ariful Quran, by Mufti Muhammad Shafi RE