SC rules infertility no ground to deny dower or maintenance

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan has declared that a woman's infertility cannot be grounds to withhold her dower (haq mehr) or maintenance (nafaqah), terming such actions unlawful.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi issued a strongly worded written verdict while dismissing a petition filed by a man named Saleh Muhammad, who had sought exemption from maintenance obligations on the basis of his wife’s alleged infertility.

The court expressed stern disapproval over the petitioner’s conduct, stating that personal attacks on women will not be tolerated within judicial proceedings.

It further ruled that the dignity of a woman must be protected at all costs and that targeting women with false accusations only serves to deepen social prejudice.

According to the judgment, the petitioner had accused his wife of not being a “real woman” due to infertility, abandoned her at her parents’ home, and subsequently remarried—refusing to pay her dower and maintenance.

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The woman’s medical reports, however, refuted all allegations made by her husband.

Calling the petitioner’s behavior abusive and defamatory, the Supreme Court upheld the verdicts of the lower courts and imposed a fine of Rs. 500,000 on him for filing a baseless petition and wasting the court’s time.

The court emphasized that safeguarding women's rights is a constitutional responsibility of the judiciary and noted that the woman in question had been subjected to humiliation and mental agony for over a decade.