Mehr/Dower under Muslim Law

Definition of Dower :
According to Mulla, ‘a sum of money or other property which the wife is entitled to receive from the husband in ‘consideration of marriage. According to Wilson, ‘Dower is a consideration for the surrender of person by the wife.’ Justice Mohammod in Abdul Kadir v. Salima, defines dower in the following words :
Mahr has been compared to the price in a contract of sale because marriage is a civil contract and sale is a typical contract to which Muslim Jurists are accustomed to refer to way of analogy.
Nature of Dower:
The concept of Mahr occupied unique position in Muslim law of marriage. So, dower is inherent in the concept of marriage under Muslim law and it is an integral part of it. It is a sort of deterrent to the husband’s absolute power of pronouncing divorce on his wife, so the main object of dower is to offer protection to the wife against such arbitrary power. It may be settled before marriage, or at the time of the marriage, or even after the marriage.
The different conceptions on Mahr are are follows :
1. Mahr : as a consideration for marriage.
2. Mahr : as a mark of respect towards wife.
Mahr : As a consideration for marriage : Undoubtedly, dower is one of the essential incidents of a marriage and is inherent in the Muslim concept of marriage. The contractual character of Muslim marriage is also emphasized by the presence of Mahr as an important integral part of Muslim marriage. Mahr is defined as ‘the sum of money or property which the wife receives from the husband in consideration of the marriage. It is not strictly speaking consideration in the sense of a ‘quid pro quo’ contemplated by the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
Mahr : As a mark of respect towards wife : Mahr is intended to be mark of respect in which the wife is held by the husband. Hedaya provides that, ‘the payment of dower is enjoined by the law, merely as a token of respect for its object (the woman), therefore the mention of it is not absolutely essential to the validity of a marriage, and for the same reason, a marriage is also valid although the man were to engage in the contract on the special condition that there should be no dower.’
Object of Dower :
The objects of dower are threefold:
i. To impose an obligation on the husband as a mark of respect to the wife,
ii. To place a check on the capricious use of divorce on the part of the husband, and
iii. To provide for her subsistence after marriage or by divorce.
Minimum Dower
1. Hanafi Law : 10 dirhams
2. Maliki Law : 3 dirhams
3. Shafi Law : No minimum fixed
4. Shia Law : No minimum fixed
Classification of Dower:
Dower may be of two types,
I. Specified dower (Mahr-i-Musamma) and
II. Proper Dower (Mahr-i-Misl).
I-Specified dower (Mahr-i-Musamma) :
When the amount of dower is fixed by a contract between the parties to the marriage, it is called Specified Dower. It may be noted that the common practice is to settle the amount of dower at the time of the marriage. Such amount may also be fixed by the father or if the son is minor or insane. According to the Sunni law, the dower fixed by the father is binding on the son, and the father is not personally liable to pay it but according to the Shia law, if the son has no means to pay the specified Dower, the father is liable to pay it.
Specified Dower may be divided into two parts
(a) Prompt Dower (Mahr-i-Muwajjal) and
(b) Deferred Dower (Mahr-Muwajjal)
Prompt Dower (Mahr-i-Muwajjal) : Prompt Dower is payable to wife immediately after marriage or on her demand at any time.
Characteristic features of Prompt Dower are as under :
(i) It may be demanded by the wife any time she likes, whether the consummation has taken place or not.
(ii) As soon as it has been demanded by the wife, the husband may pay it promptly or immediately. If any delay is caused in the payment, the wife is entitled to get also the interest for the period during which it remained unpaid.
(iii) The wife may refuse consummation till the husband does not pay the Prompt Dower on demand provided the marriage is not consummated.
It is not necessary under this type of Dower that wife should demand the Prompt Dower immediately after the marriage. It is possible that wife may demand it immediately after completion of marriage or after several years. It does not become Deferred only because it has been demanded very late. The promptness is not in demand, it is in payment after the demand.
Deferred Dower (Mahr-Muwajjal) : The Deferred Dower is payable to wife on the expiry of Specified period or on the happening of such contingency to which it is deferred. On the dissolution of the marriage either by divorce or death of either party, it is payable immediately in every other case. So a Deferred Dower is payable :
(i) upon the happening of a specified event, if so agreed.
(ii) on the dissolution of marriage.

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