Nikah during ‘Idda

Question

Hinda, the wife of the late Zayd, three months and five days after Zayd’s death, entered into nikah with ‘Amr, and two or three days after the nikah ‘Amr learned that she had contracted the nikah while still within her ‘idda. Even after learning of it, ‘Amr did nothing with the said Hinda — neither separation (tafriq), nor mutaraka (abandonment), nor annulment (faskh) — and so the two began living together, that is, he also began having intercourse with her.

Answer

The ‘idda of death for a woman who is not pregnant is four months and ten days; nikah before the ‘idda is complete is impermissible. If ‘Amr knew that Hinda’s ‘idda had not been completed, then this nikah was batil (void) and sheer zina (fornication).

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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