“I will regard you as my sister” — in the future tense

Question

Question: A man said to his wife two or three times while quarrelling: “From today I will regard you as my sister.” Has talaq taken effect in such a case or not? And if talaq has taken effect, then what should be done afterwards?

Answer

In the case asked about, the words “From today I will regard you as my sister” are in the future tense, whereas for talaq and zihar to take effect the past or present tense is required: [ar]وفي المحيط: لو قال بالعربية: أطلق، لا يكون طلاقًا إلا إذا غلب استعماله في الحال فيكون طلاقًا[/ar] “In al-Muhit: if he said in Arabic ‘utalliqu’ (أطلق — ‘I divorce / I will divorce’)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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