The imamate of the husband of a dissolute woman

Question

A man’s wife went off with another man and lived with him for quite a long time; during this period a child was born to this woman from the abductor. Afterwards her husband brought the said woman back and settled her again in his home. Can this woman’s husband be an imam or not? Moreover, her husband also says that the woman has repented. Please explain with proof.

Answer

If the wife is dissolute, and the husband does not consent to her dissoluteness but, on the contrary, forbids her, yet she does not desist, then none of her sin falls on the husband, and it is not obligatory (wajib) for the husband to divorce such a woman.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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