Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri by Shaykh Ghulām Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
❖ Question:
Is it permissible for a father to marry his son’s divorced or widowed wife (whether consummated or not), or for a son to marry his father’s divorced or widowed wife (whether consummated or not)?
✿ Answer:
It is not permissible for either the father or the son to marry the other’s wife, whether or not the marriage was consummated.
A father-in-law and daughter-in-law can never be married to each other. This is among the eternally prohibited relationships (maḥarramāt abadiyyah).
❖ Qur’anic Evidences:
① ﴿وَحَلَائِلُ أَبْنَائِكُمُ﴾
📖 [Sūrah al-Nisā’, 4:23]
Translation:
“And (forbidden to you are) the wives of your sons.”
② ﴿وَلَا تَنْكِحُوا مَا نَكَحَ آبَاؤُكُمْ مِنَ النِّسَاءِ﴾
📖 [Sūrah al-Nisā’, 4:22]
Translation:
“And do not marry those women whom your fathers have married.”
✅ Summary of the Ruling:
① A father can never marry his son’s wife, even if there was no consummation.
② A son can never marry his father’s wife, even if there was no consummation.
③ These prohibitions are absolute and permanent, based on clear Qur’anic injunctions without any condition of consummation.
