Marrying spouse's sister before completion of first wife's iddat declared 'illegal' in Pakistan

The Lahore High Court on Friday declared a marriage between a man and his former wife's sister ‘unlawful,’ which was solemnised before the completion of the first wife's iddat period.

The court's verdict, delivered in a case filed by Sabir Ali, who lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against his brother-in-law, Musawwar Hussain, in August 2023. 

Ali alleged that Hussain had married his younger sister while in a relationship with his elder sister.

The FIR further stated that the second marriage occurred only nine days after the first wife's divorce, violating Sharia law, which dictates a longer iddat period.

Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh issued an 11-page judgment. The judgment declared that marrying a former wife's sister during iddat is equivalent to marrying two sisters simultaneously, which explicitly violates Sharia law.

The court ruling cited scholarly consensus that a man cannot marry his ex-wife's sister until the iddat period of the first spouse has concluded. 

However, this kind of marriage becomes permissible once the iddat period of a previous wife is over.

The court ordered that upon learning about such a marriage, the husband and wife must separate immediately. If they fail to do so, the responsibility falls on a Qazi, registrar of their Nikah, to dissolve the marriage.