Marriage can be dissolved for discord without proving cruelty, rules SC

In a significant ruling, Pakistan's Supreme Court has clarified the legal distinction between dissolving a marriage through khula and on the grounds of shiqaq (marital discord). The court stated that khula requires the wife's voluntary consent and often involves returning the dower, whereas a dissolution for shiqaq is based on an established marital breakdown and does not require the wife to surrender her financial rights. The judgment was issued by a five-member bench in response to petitions from two women whose marriages were dissolved via khula against their will.