Fatwa ID: 06333

Answered by: Alimah Aabedah Khatun

Question:

I want to get divorced due to my husband’s porn addiction. The last Muslim counsellor advised me to go into separation rather than divorce to give my husband a last-est chance to fix himself. If you can please advise as to how I can go about this.

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Answer:

In Islam a person is either married or not married, ‘separation’ is done by the husband and wife mutually agreeing to each other to spend a bit of time alone or away from each other.

However, this cannot go on for a long time as Allah has said in the Quran:

فَإِمْسَاكٌ بِمَعْرُوفٍ أَوْ تَسْرِيحٌ بِإِحْسَانٍ

Then, either keep [her] in an acceptable manner or release [her] with good treatment

(Surah Baqarah – verse 229)

The husband should keep her within the marriage and treat her well (by fulfilling her rights) or he should let go of her, if he is unable to retain her then he should let go, if he does not then the case should be sent to an Islamic court or shariah council to cause a separation between the spouses.

أَمَرَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ بِالْإِمْسَاكِ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ، وَقَدْ عَجَزَ عَنْ الْإِمْسَاكِ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ؛ لِأَنَّ ذَلِكَ بِإِيفَاءِ حَقِّهَا فِي الْوَطْءِ، وَالنَّفَقَةِ، فَتَعَيَّنَ عَلَيْهِ التَّسْرِيحُ بِالْإِحْسَانِ، فَإِنْ فَعَلَ، وَإِلَّا نَابَ الْقَاضِي مَنَابَهُ فِي التَّسْرِيحِ، وَهُوَ التَّفْرِيقُ

(Badai Sinai – volume 3 – page 603)

Only Allah knows best.

Written by Alimah Aabedah Khatun

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham