The Endgame

Starry-eyed, she crossed the threshold to what

she misconstrued as eternal marital bliss.
Oblivious to the impending anguish, little did she
realize that her dreams will acrimoniously shatter
at the hands of her soulmate. But she was not to
bear the torment for long. Defying the norm, she
refused to endure in silence and decided to end her
suffering. But did she have the right to annul her
sour marriage?

Yes, contrary to what women believe or are made to

believe, they do have the right to end their marriage. The decision to rescind her marital agreement was the
light at the end of the tunnel for Aleena Shafqat who had been putting up with an abusive husband for the
past five years. The right has been granted in the religion and in the law of the state. Only the modus
operandi is different.
According to Asma Jahangir, president of the Pakistan Commission for Human Rights, women have a legal
right to divorce. They can take the initiative and end the marriage if they are not happy with it. In the law of
the state, a wife who could not find herself to be in a peaceful wedlock with her husband and is desirous of
getting a divorce has a statutory right to do so as the law does not believe in hateful unions. Section 2 of the
Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act permits divorce on any one or more of the following grounds:
(i)If the whereabouts of the husband have not been known for a period of four years.
(ii)If the husband has neglected or has failed to provide for her maintenance for a period of two years.
(iii)If the husband has taken an additional wife in contravention of the provisions of the Muslim Family
Laws Ordinance, 1961.
(iv)If the husband has been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of seven years or more.
(v) If the husband has failed to perform, without reasonable cause, his marital obligations for a period of
three years.
(vi) If the husband was impotent at the time of the marriage and continues to be so.
(vii) If the husband has been insane for a period of two years or is suffering from leprosy or a virulent
venereal disease.
(viii)If the girl had been given in marriage by her father or other guardian before she attained the age of
fifteen years, repudiated the marriage before attaining the age of eighteen years; provided that the marriage
has not been consummated;
(ix) If the husband treats her with cruelty.
The first impediment that the woman faces while asking for divorce comes from her own friends and family
as khula is considered a taboo. Besides being in a male-dominated society, she is psychologically debarred
from having access to the statutes enumerating and ensuring the right of getting divorce under the above
mentioned eventualities. If she does succeed in escaping a bad marriage, the husband does not provide any
economic support for her or her children though he is obliged to do so. It is to help women escape this fate
that the Council for Islamic ideology (CII) has given the proposal to reform Islamic law concerning the
family, in order to provide greater rights for women in the case of divorce. CII proposed that the wife should
be able to ask for a divorce, in writing, with an obligation for the husband to accept the request within 90
days. After this period of time, the marriage would be dissolved anyway, unless the woman withdrew the
 request. It is also advised that women should declare their
property at the time of their marriage, because after divorce
many husbands strip their wives of their own property.
Rabia, the daughter of a well-to-do entrepreneur got married
with dreams of a blissfully perfect future ahead. Little had
she known that her husband had just tied the knot because she
had a big bungalow and a plot in her name. “I had to bear the
torment of living with this monster of a man. He humiliated
me in front of his family and even hit me when extremely
angry. I dreaded his presence but couldn’t share the problems
with my parents as they were too old and my mother was also
a heart patient. My friends suggested that I seek divorce but I
was too scared to do so as I had two children now. With the
passage of time I realized that it is better for the childern to
have a good mother than an abusive father so I decided to
leave him. My husband threatened that if I want divorce, I
will have to let go of my property. He forcefully stripped me off my rightful inheritance as I went through a
very painful break up.”
The proposal given by the CII works for such girls who have to renounce whatever they own for freedom. In
order to have a successful marriage, it is also important to understand the nikahnama and the rights granted
therein.

The rights in the Nikahnama

Nikahnama is the ingress to connubial life. It lays down conditions which are beneficial to both the husband
and the wife but unfortunately, in our patriarchal society, the clauses that give women certain rights are
crossed out.
Point number 18 asks whether the husband has delegated the power of divorce to the wife. This point is
conveniently crossed out as giving this right is considered a bad omen. The woman should get this right so
that in case of a sour marriage, the legal proceedings go smoothly.
Point number 19 asks whether the husband’s right to divorce has been curtailed in any way. Hardly anybody
restrains the man’s right to divorce or puts conditions on it. If this slot is filled, it will put a leash on those
husbands who threaten their wives with divorce if they do anything against their wishes or divorce them in
anger.
Clauses 14 to 17 and clause number 20 deal with the settlement of dower (mehr). It is the amount of money
that the husband is liable to pay to his wife. Some amount of dower is prompt (to be paid on the wedding
day) and some is deferred (to be paid on demand). The best option is the prompt payment because many in-
laws do not pay the dower money later on. It is even better to get some property written in the bride’s name
if the husband can afford and the necessary documents to be prepared and attached at the time of marriage.
Such a set-up would discourage the in-laws to resort to cruel behaviour and would also discourage the
husband from getting a second wife as in such a case, he would have to let go of his property.
Filling out all the sections of the Nikahnama does not mean that the family is encouraging the girl to break
the marriage whenever she desires so, it just strengthens the newly formed bond.
A woman has a lot of rights granted by the Shariah and the law of the state. It is in her best interest to be
well-aware of what she is capable of before entering wedlock and then make the compromises required for a
fruitful relationship.