Family · Supreme Court of Pakistan

The courts gave her khula, and took her dower. The Supreme Court gave it back.

The short answer

A wife sued for dissolution of marriage. During the case her husband married again without permission. The courts below turned her case into khula and made her give up her remaining dower. In January 2026 the Supreme Court held that khula needs the wife's own clear consent, and ordered the remaining dower of Rs 12 lakh to be paid to her.

Mst. Naila Javed v. Nasir Khan · Supreme Court of Pakistan · PLD 2026 SC 302 · decided 12 January 2026

By the FAI Legal editorial desk · 10 October 2026 · 5 min read

When a wife goes to a Family Court for a divorce, the case often ends in khula, and khula usually means she gives up her dower. Many women do not know that they never asked for khula in the first place.

This matters to any wife seeking dissolution on grounds such as cruelty, non-payment of maintenance or a second marriage, and to lawyers handling such cases.

Key points

Khula is a distinct remedy grounded in the wife's express and voluntary consent. A court cannot, on its own motion, convert her suit under the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act 1939 into one for khula.
Section 2(iia) of the 1939 Act: a wife is entitled to dissolution if the husband has taken an additional wife in contravention of the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961.
Section 6 of the 1961 Ordinance: no man shall contract another marriage during an existing one except with the previous permission in writing of the Arbitration Council.
In PLD 2026 SC 302 the Supreme Court set aside the khula, dissolved the marriage and held the wife entitled to her remaining dower of Rs 12,00,000.

The rule in one line

If a wife asks the court to dissolve her marriage on legal grounds, the court must decide those grounds. It cannot turn her case into khula, and take her dower, unless she clearly asks for khula herself.

What happened in this case

The couple married on 16 December 2013. After the marriage broke down, the wife filed a suit in the Family Court for dissolution on the grounds of cruelty, non-payment of the remaining dower and of maintenance, and the husband's second marriage during the case without her permission (paragraph 4).

In cross-examination the husband admitted he had not provided maintenance, and that he contracted a second marriage during the family case in 2016. He also admitted he did not know whether his wife was aware of it (paragraph 7).

The Family Court did not decide the pleaded grounds. Relying only on her aversion to him, it dissolved the marriage by khula and, as a condition, directed her to give up her remaining dower. The Appellate Court and the Peshawar High Court, Abbottabad Bench, upheld that on 30 June 2025 (paragraphs 1, 4 and 6).

What the Supreme Court said

A bench of Chief Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Musarrat Hilali decided the petition on 12 January 2026. Justice Musarrat Hilali wrote the judgment.

On khula: it is a distinct remedy grounded in the wife's express and voluntary consent, and a court cannot, on its own motion, convert a suit under the 1939 Act into one for khula without a clear and unequivocal statement by the wife. The judgments granting khula without her seeking it were legally unsustainable (paragraph 9).

On cruelty: the husband's admitted failure to pay maintenance, his second marriage without her permission and the questions put to her in cross-examination to embarrass her brought the case within legal cruelty and inequitable treatment. Her refusal to live with him was not recalcitrance (paragraph 7).

The second marriage is a ground in itself

Section 2(iia) of the 1939 Act entitles a wife to dissolution if the husband has taken another wife in contravention of the 1961 Ordinance. Under section 6 of the Ordinance, a second marriage without the written permission of the Arbitration Council is such a contravention, with penal and civil consequences (paragraph 10).

Here the husband neither obtained his wife's permission nor sought a declaration from the Arbitration Council, which conclusively established the ground. The lower courts had failed to decide it (paragraph 10).

The result

The petition was converted into an appeal and allowed. The marriage was dissolved, and the wife was held entitled to her remaining dower of Rs 12,00,000 (twelve lakh rupees), to be paid to her through the Executing or Family Court (paragraph 11).

The case at a glance

Facts: Married 16 December 2013. The wife sued for dissolution on cruelty, unpaid dower and maintenance, and the husband's second marriage during the case. He admitted the second marriage in 2016 and non-payment of maintenance. The Family Court granted khula on her aversion and made her forgo the remaining dower; the Appellate Court and the Peshawar High Court, Abbottabad Bench, upheld it.
The question: Whether a court may, on its own, convert a wife's suit for dissolution into khula and make her give up her dower; and whether the husband's second marriage without permission entitled her to dissolution.
What the Court held: No court may convert her suit into khula without her clear and unequivocal statement. The second marriage without the Arbitration Council's written permission established the ground under s.2(iia). Appeal allowed; marriage dissolved; remaining dower of Rs 12,00,000 to be paid to her.
Why: Khula is a distinct remedy grounded in the wife's express and voluntary consent (following PLD 2024 SC 645 and PLD 2025 SC 262). Section 2(iia) remains operative, and a second marriage in breach of s.6 of the Ordinance carries civil consequences including dissolution. The admitted facts also amounted to legal cruelty.
Limits: The decision turns on the pleadings and the husband's own admissions. Where a wife does clearly seek khula, the court may decide what she must return; this case is about a court imposing khula she did not ask for.

In the Court’s words

“A Court cannot, on its own motion, convert a suit under the DMMA into one for khula in the absence of a clear and unequivocal statement by the wife.”
PLD 2026 SC 302, para 9

“Under section 6 of the MFLO, contracting a second marriage without written permission of the Arbitration Council constitutes a contravention attracting both penal consequences and civil consequences, including dissolution under the DMMA.”
PLD 2026 SC 302, para 10

“Consequently, the petitioner is entitled to the remaining dower of Rs. 12,00,000/- (Twelve Lakh Rupees) which shall be paid to her in accordance with law through the Executing/Family Court.”
PLD 2026 SC 302, para 11

The law it relies on

Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 s.2(iia)

A woman married under Muslim Law shall be entitled to obtain a decree for the dissolution of her marriage on the ground "that the husband has taken an additional wife in contravention of the provisions of the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961".

Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961 s.6(1)

"No man, during the subsistence of an existing marriage, shall, except with the previous permission in writing of the Arbitration Council, contract another marriage".

What this does not mean

It does not mean khula is never available. A wife who clearly and voluntarily asks for khula can still obtain it; the point is that the court cannot choose it for her.
It does not mean every second marriage is unlawful. The ground arises when the husband marries again without the Arbitration Council's written permission.
It does not decide the amount of dower in other cases. The Rs 12 lakh was this wife's remaining dower.

Questions people ask

I filed for divorce, not khula. Can the court give me khula anyway?

The Supreme Court in PLD 2026 SC 302 said a court cannot, on its own motion, convert a suit under the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act 1939 into one for khula without a clear and unequivocal statement by the wife. Tell your lawyer exactly which remedy you are seeking.

My husband married again without asking me. Is that a ground for dissolution?

Section 2(iia) of the 1939 Act gives a wife a ground for dissolution if the husband has taken another wife in contravention of the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961, which requires the previous written permission of the Arbitration Council.

Do I lose my dower if the marriage is dissolved on these grounds?

In this case the wife's marriage was dissolved and she was held entitled to her full remaining dower of Rs 12 lakh. Speak to a lawyer about your own claim.

Sources

Mst. Naila Javed v. Nasir Khan, PLD 2026 SC 302 (Supreme Court of Pakistan, 12 January 2026), paras 1, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11
A court cannot convert a wife's suit for dissolution into khula without her clear statement; a second marriage without the Arbitration Council's written permission is a ground under s.2(iia); marriage dissolved and remaining dower of Rs 12,00,000 to be paid. verified against full text Supreme Court of Pakistan (judgment PDF)
Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939, s.2(iia) text checked in FAI Statute Search Pakistan Code
Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961, s.6 text checked in FAI Statute Search Pakistan Code

Every quote and section above is traced to the full judgment or statute text by an automatic check that runs on every update.

What the reel says

Read the words of the reel

She went to court for a divorce. During the case, her husband married again, without her permission.

But the courts gave her khula instead, and for khula she had to give up the rest of her dower.

Then the Supreme Court said:

Khula rests on the wife's own clear consent. No court can turn her case into khula on its own.

A second marriage without the Arbitration Council's written permission is itself a ground for divorce (s.2(iia), Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act 1939).

Marriage dissolved, and the rest of her dower, Rs. 12 lakh, paid to her.

PLD 2026 SC 302 Find it in FAI Legal's Judgment Search and read the whole judgment inside the app.

Educational legal information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts. Speak to a qualified lawyer about your situation. Reading this page does not create a lawyer and client relationship. Review status: Pending advocate review. How we check.