A secret nikah

Question

A man, namely Ghulam Nabi son of Ghulam Muhammad, contracts a secret nikah with a woman, concealing it from her heirs; her name is Khadija Bibi daughter of Sardar Khan, and the woman is a widow. The relatives say to this man, that is, to Ghulam Nabi: "Separate from this woman," since there is suspicion; upon which he says: "This woman is to me like a mother and a sister." Yet two or three years have passed since the secret nikah.

Answer

[ar]وشرط حضور شاهدين حرين مكلفين سامعين قولهما معًا على الأصح، فاهمين أنه نكاح على المذهب[/ar] "It is a condition that two witnesses be present who are free, legally responsible (mukallaf), hearing the words of both parties together, according to the soundest view, and understanding that it is a nikah, according to the school" (al-Durr al-Mukhtar).

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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