❖ Ruling in Question:
Is it permissible to annul a marriage (فسخِ نکاح) due to a defect or hidden illness discovered after the contract?
❖ Analysis of Narrations:
➊ Hadith of ʿĀliyah (Banu Ghifār):
The Prophet ﷺ reportedly married a woman named ʿĀliyah. When she entered his company and removed her clothing, he noticed patches of leucoderma (برص) on her body and said:
"Wear your clothes and return to your family."
And he ﷺ ordered that her mahr be given.
Aḥmad 3/493, al-Kāmil fī al-Ḍuʿafāʾ by Ibn ʿAdī 306, al-Ḥākim 4/34, al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī 7/213
Grading: Weak (ḍaʿīf) — as stated by Shaykh al-Albānī (Irwāʾ al-Ghalīl: 1912)
Moreover, the phrase "الْحَقِي بِأَهْلِكِ" is understood as a metaphor for divorce, not necessarily annulment.✔ Shaykh Ṣiddīq Ḥasan Khān and Shaykh al-Albānī have favored this interpretation.
al-Rawḍah al-Nadiyyah 2/65, al-Taʿlīqāt al-Raḍiyyah 2/203➋ Report from ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه):
A man marries a woman and after consummation discovers she suffers from leucoderma, insanity, or leprosy—she is entitled to mahr, and the one who deceived the groom must pay it.
Saʿīd ibn Manṣūr: 818, al-Muwaṭṭaʾ: 2/526, Ibn Abī Shaybah: 4/175, Dāraqutnī: 3/266 Grading: Weak due to incomplete chain (munqaṭiʿ) Taʿlīq ʿalā Sabil al-Salām by Shaykh Ṣubḥī Ḥallāq: 6/94➌ Report from ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه):
If a woman suffers from “qarn” (a severe physical defect), the husband may decide to continue or leave. If he had intercourse with her, she is entitled to mahr.
Saʿīd ibn Manṣūr: 820, al-Bayhaqī: 7/215 Grading: Weak, per Shaykh Ṣubḥī Ḥallāq (6/95)➍ Report from ʿUmar on the Impotent Man:
ʿUmar (رضي الله عنه) reportedly ruled that an impotent man be given one year to remedy the issue before the wife can seek annulment.
Ibn Abī Shaybah: 4/206 Grading: Weak, per Shaykh Ṣubḥī Ḥallāq (6/96)➎ Another Athar from ʿUmar, ʿAlī, and Ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنهم):
Women may be returned (i.e., marriage annulled) for four defects: madness, leprosy, leucoderma, and genital disease (e.g., syphilis).
al-Bayhaqī: 7/215 Grading: Disconnected — Imām al-Ṣanʿānī called it munqaṭiʿ Subul al-Salām: 3/1353❖ Fiqh-Based Analysis:
Since all these narrations are weak, it is not valid to derive a firm legal ruling that a marriage is annulled solely due to a physical defect.
❖ Juristic Opinions:
✔ Jumhūr (Majority of Scholars):
Any physical or mental defect that:
- Causes hatred between spouses
- Prevents the core objective of marriage, or
- Directly interferes with conjugal relations
→ Justifies annulment (فسخ)
al-Umm 5/84, al-Mabsūṭ 5/95, al-Kharshī 3/238, al-Mughnī 7/112, Nayl al-Awṭār 4/239✔ Ḥanafīs (Imām Abū Ḥanīfah and Abū Yūsuf):
- The husband cannot annul the marriage for any defect—he may divorce if needed.
- The wife, however, may annul the marriage only if the husband is physically incapable of intercourse.
✔ Ẓāhiriyyah (Ibn Ḥazm):
- No annulment is allowed due to any defect whatsoever.
al-Muḥallā 10/109✔ Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله):
- Either spouse has the right to annul the marriage due to leprosy, leucoderma, or madness.
Fatāwā al-Nisāʾ, Pg. 103✔ Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله):
- Supports the view of the Jumhūr and favors their opinion.
Zād al-Maʿād 5/180
Conclusion (Rājih / Strongest View):
There is no sound Hadith that confirms a marriage is annulled solely due to discovering a defect.
Therefore:
✔ Annulment (فسخ) is not directly proven from the Prophet ﷺ.
✔ Divorce (ṭalāq) and khulʿ are valid and legislated options.
✔ If living together becomes difficult due to a discovered defect, then:
- The man may give divorce, or
- The woman may seek khulʿ
This is the balanced and correct approach in line with Sharīʿah and sound principles of fiqh.
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
