Kerala High Court: Muslim Man Cannot Marry Again If Unable to Maintain Wives

The Kerala High Court has ruled that polygamy under Muslim personal law is conditional on the husband’s ability to provide justice and equal treatment to each wife.

Justice P.V. Kunhikrishnan observed that a man incapable of maintaining multiple wives cannot lawfully enter successive marriages.

The case involved a blind beggar who married a second wife while his first marriage was still subsisting and threatened a third marriage.

The court directed the Social Welfare Department, with the assistance of religious leaders, to counsel him against remarrying.

[Jubairiya v Saidalavi]