A man divorced his wife because she was not beautiful, and he has a deferred mahr. What is the ruling on this divorce? And is he allowed to pay the deferred mahr in installments?

Al-Halabi : A questioner asks our Shaykh, saying: A man wants to divorce his wife because she is not as he desires in terms of beauty.

The Shaykh : Oh, my eye...
Al-Halabi : And he has a deferred mahr of two thousand dinars, or one thousand dinars.

The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.

The questioner : And it will be paid in installments. So, is there any injustice to his wife in this payment if he divorces her?

The Shaykh : If she agrees to it, there is no injustice today.

Another questioner : It must be according to the system of the Islamic bank.

The Shaykh : How?

The questioner : The installment must be according to the system of the Islamic bank, if the period is extended.

The Shaykh : Well done.

The questioner : The amount increases!

The Shaykh : Of course, the answer is clear: if she has a right, he must hasten to pay it to her.
Al-Halabi : But, Shaykh, in reality, she cannot agree initially, but she agrees because she is forced by the court to consent.

The Shaykh : Why is she forced?
Al-Halabi : Because her husband is saying, "I do not have the ability to pay more or less than fifty dinars a month," so she agrees, and the judge forces her. The judge issues an order that she accept the two thousand dinars, taking them as fifty dinars a month, for example.

The Shaykh : I tell you, no. Today, the courts they call Sharia courts always have rulings in favor of the wife, not in favor of the husband. The court does not force a husband to divorce his wife, nor does it force a woman to be divorced by her husband if she is not willing to be divorced, especially if she has rights against the husband, such as an objection to...?

The questioner : My Shaykh, excuse me, it was a misunderstanding on my part.

The Shaykh : Please go ahead.

The questioner : As for the judge, he does not obligate her to divorce; he obligates her to agree to the installment plan from the man...

The Shaykh : I know, but what is this installment in exchange for?

The questioner : In exchange for the divorce.

The Shaykh : So she does not want the divorce from him.

The questioner : He wants to divorce her.

The Shaykh : Let us assume a husband wants to divorce his wife, and she does not want this divorce. Let us set aside the issue of what? The mahr. Let us assume a husband wants to divorce his wife and she does not want to be divorced from him. Does the judge force this woman to submit to the husband's ruling by divorcing her?

The questioner : This is after a period, Shaykh.

The Shaykh : Allow me a moment. What is this "after a period"?

The questioner : If the husband insists on the divorce.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : They give her a period, as you mentioned, because most of the laws now in the Sharia courts are in the woman's favor.

The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.

The questioner : So they say this is an arbitrary divorce, as they call it.

The Shaykh : Okay, yes.

The questioner : An arbitrary divorce. She must now be absent for one, two, or three months, according to what the judge determines.

The Shaykh : One year, two years.

The questioner : And she returns, and the husband insists on the divorce, so he says to her, "My daughter, this is your husband, he is insistent on the divorce, and the divorce is necessary."

The Shaykh : I do not want it, because I am not lacking in anything with him, so I do not want him to divorce me. What is your opinion of this court that rules other than what Allah has revealed, forcing this woman to be divorced by her husband against her will? I do not believe this exists in the judiciary.

The questioner : Well, what is the solution, my Shaykh?

The Shaykh : Be patient. The case has two sides. As I understood from you just now, the judge today forces the woman to be divorced by her husband, and she does not want the divorce. I do not imagine this, but I imagine that she agrees to the divorce. Then the second ruling comes, which is the installment plan you resorted to before addressing the first aspect of the issue. If she agrees to the divorce, then it is possible for this man to pay a certain percentage each month until he clears his liability. But this does not mean she is forced to divorce; rather, as was said, she agreed to what level? He wants to divorce her, and she may not be convinced that he will divorce her and she will be rid of his evil, for the sake of his stinginess or his miserliness, Allah knows what the relationship between them is. But she has a right over him, and the judge agrees to the installment plan. That is fine, but let no one understand that the woman is forced to be divorced by her husband while she is not satisfied with this divorce, unless it is established for the judge—and I wish this ruling were implemented—that this wife does not listen to her husband's word, does not obey her Lord, she displays her adornment, she seeks khul', and so on. A man filed a case against such a woman, and they do not divorce her from him...

The questioner : How, my Shaykh, is the divorce in absentia, which is happening now with some people, as we started the discussion? He says, "I want to divorce." The judge says to him, "Consult yourself." He consults himself, as you said: "He hit her, according to your opinion." He consults himself after a year and says, "I want to divorce her." The judge says to him, "Bring two witnesses." He brings two witnesses and says, "I have divorced her." He writes the paper, writes her address, and sends the divorce paper to her address, and she is not present, so she becomes divorced.

The Shaykh : No problem, this is a different case from our case.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : No, no, because in that case the woman has no knowledge of it, whereas our case is that the wife and husband are in disagreement over a financial aspect, for example. He wants to divorce her, and the judge forces her to be divorced from him while she is averse to it and she is present. This is not imaginable.
Abu Layla : That is, if the husband does not love this wife, and she is, of course, living with him.
Al-Halabi : So you know, Abu Ahmad, the microphone is clicking. -The students laugh-

The Shaykh : Why does he want to divorce her? Because she is beautiful or because she is ugly?
Abu Layla : Because she is ugly.

The Shaykh : That is it.
Abu Layla : So, would this husband be unjust to this wife if he divorces her?

The Shaykh : Is there nothing else at all?
Abu Layla : Absolutely not. She responds to him and is good and fine.

The Shaykh : She responds to him, meaning she is obedient to him?
Abu Layla : Obedient, yes, except that she is only ugly.

The Shaykh : So he is not pleased with her beauty?
Abu Layla : Yes, only that.

The Shaykh : He bears no sin.
Abu Layla : May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : And you...