Is My Nikah Valid Without the Bride’s Wali’s Permission?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

A girl and I performed a nikah over the phone, with two witnesses, without her wali’s permission to avoid a haram relationship. Is our nikah valid under these circumstances?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.

In the Hanafi School, a marriage without the approval of a guardian (wali) is only valid if the person she is marrying is legally considered a suitable match (kafa’a). Was this the case?

According to the famous relied position in the Hanafi School, the marriage of a woman without the approval of her guardian (wali) is only valid if the person she is marrying is legally considered to be a suitable match (kafa’a).  This is the position adopted by the overwhelming majority of the Hanafi fuqaha,

[Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar; Maydani, al-Lubab fi Sharh al-Kitab]

Issue of Compatibility (Kafa’a)

Therefore, one must avoid marriage without parental approval, for the marriage may not be valid due to the compatibility (kafa’a) not being there. Even when a woman’s marriage without the explicit approval of her wali is valid, it is: (a) going against the Sunna and (b) may well entail being bad to one’s parents, which is among the most serious of enormities.

Marriage Over the Phone

The general strict and ideal condition is that the offer, acceptance, and witnesses must all be in one place, whether the man and woman are both physically present making these pronouncements or they appoint agents to make the pronouncements on their behalf. However, in the case over the phone, it will only be permitted if both the boy and the girl have appointed agents (wakil) to conduct their marriage.

For example, if Ali wants to marry Fatima without both of them being present in one place, Fatima, who is in Canada, may permit a relative or friend living in the States over the phone to contract her marriage with Ali and pronounce an offer or acceptance on her behalf. If, for example, she selects her relative, Abu Bakr, to be her agent, then Abu Bakr, at the time of the marriage ceremony in the presence of the witnesses, will say, “I being the agent of Fatima, daughter of such and such person have given her in the marriage of Ali with X amount of dowry. At this point, Ali will say, “I have accepted Fatima in my marriage in the presence of these witnesses.” With this, the marriage will be considered as valid.

General Marriage

Marriage is concluded and contracted with the offer and acceptance in the presence of two witnesses, or one male and two female witnesses. It is also permitted that both parties have agents conducting their marriage; hence, both agents will pronounce the offer and acceptance on behalf of the man and woman.

[Ibn ʿAbidin, Radd al-Muhtar; Maydani, al-Lubab fi Sharh al-Kitab]

Always Consider Parents Wishes and Blessings

Many times, parents in this situation feel betrayed and deeply hurt. This is far from the Quranic injunction: “Treat your parents with excellence.” [Quran, 2:83]

Parents should always be consulted and involved in the process of getting married. They are, after all, the parents—the ones who raised and nurtured them.

I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction in sha Allah.

Related

• What if a Marriage Lacks Guardian Consent?
• Is It Permissible to Conduct a Marriage via Video-Conference? (seekersguidance.org)
•  The Elements of Meaningful Marriage Contracts – SeekersGuidance
• Etiquette of Marriage: A Comprehensive SeekersGuidance Reader
• Can Two Marriage Ceremonies Take Place? – SeekersGuidance

Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersAcademy (seekersguidance.org)?

I pray this helps with your question.

Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.