In Permission for Nikah, Is the Heart’s Wish or the Tongue Considered?

Question

A certain community — for example, the Rajputs, Ranghars (a Muslim community of Rajput origin) and the like — regards the remarriage of a widow as bad, and out of ignorance the women too do not give permission for the nikah with their own mouths; rather, at the time of the nikah they refuse in front of people. That is, outwardly they refuse plainly, but in the heart there is certainly a wish for it. In this state, when she outwardly refuses, can the nikah be valid or not?

Answer

Regarding the nikah of a widow as a disgrace is grave ignorance. This custom should be broken as far as possible by explaining the rulings to the women. If a woman refuses with her tongue while wishing for the nikah in her heart, then by the Sacred Law her tongue is what counts. Then, if she refused with her tongue when the nikah was performed, that nikah did not become valid.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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