The husband left his wife and married again

Question

Question: A woman named Salma was married (nikah) to ‘Abdullah. Their life together was happy, and two children were also born. ‘Abdullah was in Calcutta; during the riots he went to Dhaka to save his life. It became known that he had also married a second time there. Six years have passed since then, and the children and Salma have no means of support. Can Salma now marry a second time or not?

Answer

In the present situation Salma is not permitted to marry a second time. Since the husband’s address is known, a letter should be written to him: “You have married a second time there, while here your wife is in distress; you can neither come nor call her to you, so pronounce talaq on her so that she can make other arrangements for herself.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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