'Fatwa' Alone Cannot Be Used To Get Divorce, Rules Madhya Pradesh High Court

Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh): The Madhya Pradesh High Court has ruled that a Family Court cannot grant divorce only on the basis of a fatwa (opinion issued) by a religious body.

The order came while hearing a case involving Dr. Shazia Nawaz Khan and her husband Syed Sami Ali, who have been living separately for nearly two years.

According to the case, the husband had written to the Darul Ifta Masjid Committee in Bhopal, seeking opinion regarding divorce. The committee issued a reply based on Islamic teachings, after which he approached the Family Court in Bhopal, asking it to declare the marriage dissolved on the basis of that opinion.

The husband had relied on a fatwa issued by the Darul Ifta Masjid Committee on October 29, 2024, and sought a divorce declaration from the Family Court.

The wife opposed the petition and filed an application seeking its dismissal. After the Family Court rejected her plea, she approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court by filing a civil revision petition.

Hearing the matter, Justice Vivek Jain of the Jabalpur Bench said that no religious institution or Darul Ifta has the authority to grant divorce to a Muslim man.

The Court Observes...

The court observed that a fatwa only provides guidance based on Islamic texts and is not a legal order or a divorce decree. Therefore, a Family Court cannot grant a divorce declaration only on the basis of such a fatwa.

The High Court also clarified an important legal point. It said that while it is commonly believed that only Muslim women can approach the court for divorce under the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939, Muslim men can also directly file a divorce petition before a Family Court under the provisions of the Family Courts Act, 1984.

The court said the husband had filed the wrong type of case because of a misunderstanding of the law. It dismissed his petition but gave him the liberty to file a fresh divorce petition before the Family Court in accordance with the law.