Reduction of the Mahr by the Agent or Guardian

Question

The marriage contract (‘aqd) of the daughter of one Zayd, named Banu Hinda, was concluded with Khalid, the son of one ‘Umar. When permission was being taken from Hinda, the agent (wakil) informed her of a mahr of 153/- rupees. In the contract gathering the agent asked an outsider to recite the nikah. From ‘Amr’s side it was said that the mahr should be changed from one amount to another (the figures are illegible in the original).

Answer

Even if the mahr is not mentioned in the nikah at all, or is explicitly negated, the nikah is still valid according to the Shari‘a, and mahr al-mithl (the customary dower) becomes wajib. [ar]وكذا يجب مهر المثل فيما إذا لم يسم مهرًا أو نفى[/ar] “Likewise mahr al-mithl is due where he did not name a mahr or negated it” (al-Durr al-Mukhtar, vol. 2, p. 517).

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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