A man married a woman who suffers from seizures caused by jinn, and her family did not inform him of this. He then divorced her because of these seizures. Does he have the right to the full bridal gift or only a portion of it?

The questioner : A woman suffers from seizures caused by jinn. Some shaykhs who performed recitation for her told her that this jinn is in love with her and will leave, by the permission of Allah, after marriage. A man proposed to her, and her family concealed her illness from him. This was not deception, but rather based on the words of that shaykh. However, they were surprised by the continuation of her seizures, so her husband divorced her because of her seizures. Question: Does the bridal gift return to the husband or not? And if it is returned, is it the whole amount or half of it?

The Shaykh : They undoubtedly deceived the man and tricked him. The bridal gift is returned to the one who deceived him, and the one who directly engaged in the deception is the wali (guardian). Therefore, it is returned to the woman's wali, whether he is her father or her brother. As for the woman, nothing is taken from her bridal gift.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : That is, from her wali, who may be her father if he married her off, or it may be her brother who married her off. The important point is that the wife keeps her bridal gift; nothing is taken from it because she did not deceive him. It was her wali who deceived the husband when he contracted the marriage with him and did not stipulate that condition in the contract. However, I advise him not to take anything, meaning he should not stir up problems, out of consideration for this afflicted woman. But if he wishes to claim his right, he has the right to seek recourse against her wali.