Does husband have to inform his second wife of his previous marriage?
Mu' meneen
Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi
wa Barakatuh. (May
Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
Thanks for
replying me before and once again we appreciate your great work. The following
is the question description:
A man(boy) got married in a foreign country & divorced her(wife) there
due to some circumstances. Now, he wants to marry again in his country and at
the time of 2nd marriage if he does not inform the girl and/or her parents of his 1st marriage, will this be a
valid marriage?
At the same
time, is it necessary to mention during a "Nikah"
that this is his 2nd marriage or about his
earlier marriages. If he does not do so(without any intention
of deceiving her), will it affect the validity of 2nd marriage in any
way.
(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)
Answer:
Does husband have to inform his
second wife of his previous marriage?
In the name of Allah, We praise
Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none
can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright.
We bear witness that there is no one (no idol,
no person, no grave, no
prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone,
and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of
His Messengers.
If one who is divorced from his
first wife, marries another woman and
does not inform the new wife and/or her parents about his first marriage and
divorce; his marriage will be legal in
the sight of Shariah. The most one may say is that the man was not
completely honest with his new wife and her family. It may be that in the future, when they find out the Truth, his dishonesty might effect the harmony in
his current marriage. The righteous and
honorable conduct would have been for the man to come clean, and tell his future wife and in-laws the
complete truth about his first marriage.
Similarly, if the man does not say anything about his
earlier marriages at the ‘nikaah’, his marriage will still be regarded as valid
and legal.
Not disclosing the
truth of his first marriage and divorce at Nikaah, or to the prospective bride, or to her family has absolutely no bearings
on the legal and Shariah validity of his current
marriage.
Whatever written of Truth and benefit
is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of
me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the
Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in
Islam,
Burhan