Is it obligatory to be dutiful to a parent who has cut off ties?

Question : May Allah reward you. Honorable Shaykh, may Allah preserve you. A woman says: My father used to treat me and my sisters harshly, and he treated my mother harshly and forcefully in those days before her passing, due to problems between them. She says: I hate my father now and I detest him with an indescribable hatred. What is the ruling on being dutiful to such a father? May Allah reward you with good.

Answer : Being dutiful to this father, who is undutiful or, more accurately, has cut off ties, is obligatory. This is because dutifulness is not based on reciprocation. Dutifulness is what a person does, whether the one he is dutiful to reciprocates his kindness or not. And Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, said: It is obligatory for the son and the daughter to be dutiful to their father, whether this father is fulfilling what is obligatory upon him regarding maintaining ties or not.