Questions:

I angrily told my wife that I would divorce her or that I would let her go. Does saying this result in divorce?

Answer:

Threatening divorce does not constitute a divorce. Saying, “I will divorce you” is a future tense expression, and thus it does not result in divorce. As stated in “Bahr al-Ra’iq”:

“It is not from ‘I divorce you’ in the present tense unless its usage in the current situation is prevalent, as noted in ‘Fath al-Qadeer’ (Vol. 3, p. 271).”

Similarly, “Radd al-Muhtar” mentions:

“Threatening with divorce is akin to proposing divorce; for instance, saying ‘I will divorce you if you do such-and-such’ (Vol. 3, p. 669).”

A threat of divorce implies presenting the idea of divorce to the wife, meaning if she does something specific, divorce will follow.

Therefore, as long as no formal divorce has been given, merely threatening does not result in divorce.

And Allah, the Most High, and His Messenger ﷺ know best.

Written by:
Mufti Syed Siraj Ul Arifeen Shah
St. Ives (Cambridgeshire, UK)
18/09/2024 21:33, 14 Rabi ul Awwal, 1445 Hijri

Translated By

Mawlana Muhmmad Irfan Qureshi