Pak singer’s remarriage with wife is valid: HC

Holding that the second marriage of Pakistani singer-composer, Adnan Sami, with Sabah Galadari was valid, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed the family court to decide the divorce petition filed by Sabah.

Holding that the second marriage of Pakistani singer-composer, Adnan Sami, with Sabah Galadari was valid, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed the family court to decide the divorce petition filed by Sabah.

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Sami and Sabah got married in 2001, divorced in 2004 and remarried in 2007. Last year, Sabah moved the family court seeking divorce.

Sami contended that his second marriage was not valid as Sabah had not complied with the Halala formalities.

According to the Sharia law, for a woman to remarry her husband, she has to marry another Muslim man, consummate that marriage and then divorce him. The non-compliance of this invalidates the remarriage.

The family court held that the singer’s second marriage was not in accordance with the Muslim law because Sabah had not complied with the Halala formalities. Sabah carried the matter to the high court challenging the family court order.
Sabah’s lawyer, Mahesh Jethmalani argued their talaq (divorce) was in Ahsan mode.

He argued that all forms of talaq in Ahsan mode, where the word talaq is pronounced only once, are revocable up to a certain period and thereafter it becomes irrevocable.

However, Sami’s lawyer Vaibhav Krishna argued that the divorce was by Khula.

The division bench of Justice D.B. Bhosale and R.Y. Ganu said Adnan had given her a ‘single-pronouncement’ divorce last time and therefore Sabah was not obliged to undergo Halala.

“In our opinion where talaq becomes irrevocable through any mode between the parties, for remarriage between them it is not necessary that Halala must be observed,” said the HC.

The HC said merely because the talaq has become irrevocable, does not mean that for every irrevocable talaq, irrespective of its mode, for remarriage it is necessary that the wife complies with Halala formalities.

The high court directed the family court not to start a fresh hearing of the case for six weeks to enable Sami to approach the Supreme Court.