Enticing an Adult Girl Away and Marrying Her

Question

Nowadays this malady has spread widely in the Punjab: as a rule, unmarried girls form secret illicit relationships simply with fasiqs (sinful men); after a few days these fasiqs, finding an opportunity, run off with them from their parents’ house, go to some other area and contract nikah. Since according to Imam Abu Hanifa ﵀ the nikah of a virgin without the guardian’s permission is permissible, the fasiqs have begun to take illicit advantage of this, as a result of which discord is arising.

Answer

The cure for this malady is not to abandon the madhhab of Imam Abu Hanifa ﵀; rather, it is not to delay the marriage of girls after they reach puberty on account of one’s customs, communal interests or personal benefits, and also to seek the girl’s permission before the marriage, so that it becomes clear whether she consents or not.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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