ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that khula cannot be granted without the wife’s explicit, informed, and voluntary consent, in a landmark judgment addressing family disputes and women’s legal rights.
A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Yahya Afridi issued the 12-page verdict, authored by Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan. The court observed that converting allegations of cruelty into khula proceedings without the woman’s approval could negatively impact her financial entitlements.
The ruling stressed that a wife must be allowed to decide whether she wants to continue pursuing claims of cruelty or seek separation through khula. The court added that if cruelty is not proven but the marriage has irretrievably collapsed, the woman still retains the right to choose the legal course available to her. However, courts should not force spouses to remain in a marriage that has effectively ended.
The judgment also broadened the scope of domestic violence, stating that abuse is not limited to physical harm. Psychological trauma, humiliation, emotional neglect, coercion, and mental suffering were also recognised as forms of domestic abuse. According to the court, mental cruelty may include continuous emotional distress, disrespect, and severe psychological pressure.
Clarifying evidentiary standards in family disputes, the Supreme Court said such cases should be decided on the basis of “preponderance of probability” rather than the stricter criminal standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt. The bench noted that family courts should not insist on unrealistic evidence such as eyewitnesses or police reports in domestic matters.
The case involved a marriage solemnised on September 19, 2016, while separation proceedings began less than a month later on October 8, 2016. Although the wife could not fully establish allegations of cruelty, the court acknowledged that the marriage had broken down beyond repair and that she consistently sought separation.
As a result, the Supreme Court partly overturned the earlier khula ruling and sent the matter back to the family court to reassess the procedure and determine the wife’s financial rights. The family court has now been directed to record the woman’s final decision. If she chooses khula, proceedings will continue under the relevant legal framework; if she opts to pursue cruelty allegations, the case will be decided accordingly.
