CASE TITLE AMBREEN AKRAM vs ASAD ULLAH KHAN Relevant sections — 2026 SCMR 1 SUPREME-COURT

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CASE TITLE AMBREEN AKRAM VS ASAD ULLAH KHAN Relevant sections... S.5, Sched.---Muslim Family Laws Ordinance (VIII of 1961), S.5---Wife's right to maintenance in non-consummated marriage---The "maintenance-obedience" concept---Conditioning a wife's right to maintenance upon physical obedience incompatible with the Quranic vision of marriage Full case summary... Notion of "surrender" lies at the heart of what jurists have historically termed the "maintenance-obedience complex"---This is the idea that a wife's entitlement to maintenance is conditional upon her obedience, most often defined in terms of physical availability for conjugal relations---In classical jurisprudence, particularly within the Hanafi and Hanbali schools, this was expressed through the doctrine of ihtib?s, which refers to the wife's seclusion or retention in the marital home for the husband's access---However, this reductive formulation, which treats marriage as a transactional exchange of physical obedience for material support, is incompatible with the Qur'anic vision of marriage as a solemn covenant based on affection and compassion---The institution of marriage is not premised on the wife's "surrender" but on mutual commitment, emotional and physical companionship, cooperation, and shared responsibility---A commitment that actualizes dignity, justice and social well-being---It aims to establish a moral and familial order rooted in justice and compassion and entails mutual moral control, and not one-sided authority---Accordingly, maintenance should not be viewed as a quid pro quo for physical obedience, but as an inherent legal and ethical obligation arising from the marital contract---It is intended to protect the wife's dignity, autonomy, and financial security---Interpretations that condition this entitlement on physical submission not only distort Islamic legal principles but also enable coercive control---A just and contemporary approach guided by Maq?sid al-Shar??ah, constitutional norms, and feminist jurisprudence must displace obedience-based reasoning in favor of frameworks that center equality, welfare, and mutual respect.

CASE TITLE AMBREEN AKRAM vs ASAD ULLAH KHAN Relevant sections — 2026 SCMR 1 SUPREME-COURT

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