Re: Inheritance Laws in Islam
Thank you both for your informative responses. I thought that was the case as well…that it is at the wife’s discretion to use it as she pleases as it is from her parents/family. In the circumstances I am talking about, the wife is also receiving an equal 50% share even though she has 1 brother- her parents have chosen to distribute it 50/50 as opposed to the Islamic way of 1/3 for the female which I think it is (and her brother agrees with this and raised no objections). Now the issue is that, this husband and wife are renting at the moment and husband is pushing the wife to get her inheritance (which is sitting in a separate account for her-she has no access to it yet) so they can buy a house instead. Her family refuses to release it to her yet as 1)they don’t trust her husband - he has previously shown physical and mental abuse to her to a large extent and 2) they agree to release the money when his family contributes too (they are also well off)…their idea is firstly that the woman shouldn’t have to contribute as it’s the husband’s duty to provide abode for her but whatever amount he puts in, they are willing to match it dollar for dollar. They are very concerned he will one day just do a runner and don’t want their daughter’s money down the drain. And if things ever turn sour she will need that money as a backup.
Oh also…she is also working at the moment so that she can help out with household expenses etc…and she pointed this out to him, noting that if she got the money it would be easier for her too as she could potentially quit working and start a family BUT she told him she can’t get anything until he also contributes (which seems reasonable to me and smart on the part of her family).
So the issue is he now keeps pestering her to get the money and keeps talking about “their” “hissa” (inheritance). She finally snapped and told him that, when he brings his “hissa”, shel bring hers (even though islamically she’s not required to).
In this case, I would advise the girl to sit tight and stay quiet. It’s creepy to ask for the inheritance while the parents are still here/alive. If this is truly the only security she has and the husband is being shady, I’d make sure to keep it separate.