Fatwa No : 83712
Wife claims giving triple Talaq and husband denies

Wife claims giving triple Talaq and husband denies

What do the learned Muftis say about this issue? I got married three years ago in Lahore. I came to my mother's house in Karachi in October. A month later, my husband sent me a message on my mobile phone and said “if you do not return by November 16, I will divorce you”. So I went to my in-laws with my father. I reached there on November 15. But when I told everyone that my husband had already given me three divorces on two separate occasions a year and a half ago, everyone told me that my divorce had already occurred at the first instance, and my son is also a month old. He was born after two divorces. I had not told anyone about my first two divorces, and that is why I was living with my husband because I knew that giving divorce three times on separate occasions constitutes divorce. And when I went to Lahore, my husband had obtained a fatwa in which he mentioned “I have never divorced my wife before”. I am also giving you that fatwa. I am sending this, please answer me in the light of Quran and Sunnah.
Note: The husband's words of divorce were, "I divorce you," three times

الجوابُ حامِدا ًو مُصلیِّا ً

A Mufti is not aware of the unseen, he is obliged to give a principled answer according to the question, and the real responsibility for the truth or falsehood of the question lies with the questioner. Subsequent to this introduction, it should be clear that in this, the woman claims that her husband has given her triple divorce, and she does not have any witnesses to the occasion, however she states that she heard the words of triple divorce with her own ears, and is also ready to take an oath on this statement, while the husband refuses to divorce her. When a situation arises as such that the woman describes hearing the words of triple divorce with her own ears, and she remembers it well, and her statement is based on truth that her husband gave her three divorces, and she does not have any witnesses to the claim and the husband also denies it, then the woman can take an oath on her statement, bearing in mind that she solely will be answerable for it in the hereafter. So, keeping in mind the principle that “the woman is the judge”, she should consider herself as a triple divorcee and should never give her husband any power over her. However, if this matter goes to the courts and the woman is unable to produce any witnesses for her claim and the judge, on the oath of the husband, decides against the wife and in favor of the husband and annuls divorce and sends her with her husband, in such a situation, although she will not be a sinner, yet, since she remembers indeed hearing three divorces with her own ears, she should not give her husband any power over her to her maximum possible extent until she becomes permissible for him by a valid shar’i process of Halala, but rather obtain separation from him through divorce with money or Khul’a.

مأخَذُ الفَتوی

كما في حاشية ابن عابدين: والمرأة كالقاضي إذا سمعته أو أخبرها عدل لا يحل له تمكينه. والفتوى على أنه ليس لها قتله، ولا تقتل نفسها بل تفدي نفسها بمال أو تهرب، كما أنه ليس له قتلها إذا حرمت عليه وكلما هرب ردته بالسحر. و في البزازية عن الأوزجندي أنها ترفع الأمر للقاضي، فإنه حلف ولا بينة لها فالإثم عليه. اهـ. قلت: أي إذا لم تقدر على الفداء أو الهرب ولا على منعه عنها فلا ينافي ما قبله. (3/ 251)۔