The Supreme Court of Pakistan has unequivocally affirmed the obligation of husbands to pay haq mehr, a financial right for wives in Islamic marriages. Responding to Khalid Parvez’s plea challenging this Shariah provision, Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa issued a three-page verdict emphasizing the legal and Shariah sanctity of haq mehr.
The court underscored that haq mehr is a safeguarded requirement under Pakistani law, and if the marriage contract doesn’t specify a time for payment, the woman has the right to demand it at any time.
The case, reaching the Supreme Court after six years, revealed the complainant’s persistent challenges to the haq mehr provision in various courts. The verdict, dismissing Parvez’s plea, highlighted that had lower courts penalized him earlier, it might not have escalated to the Supreme Court. Notably, during the case’s last hearing, the SC imposed a fine of Rs100,000 on Parvez. This landmark decision solidifies the legal standing of haq mehr, affirming its significance in protecting women’s rights within the framework of Islamic and Pakistani law.
