Wedding of a Muslim couple solemnised as per Hindu rites during a mass marriage is null and void and against the Islamic law,leading Islamic seminary Darul-Uloom Deoband has said.
The ruling came following protests over a Muslim couple– Akbal Ali and Trabunnisa — taking part in a mass marriage programme organised by an NGO in Gorakhpur district,seminary officials said.
Since they were the only Muslim couple among a group of 27,the organisers failed to make arrangements for a ‘nikah’ ceremony and they tied the knot as per Hindu rituals.
“Marriage of a Muslim couple is illegal if there is no Nikah ceremony. Islam does not permit such a marriage,” Deputy in-charge of the Deoband Fatwa Department Mufti Ahsan Kasmi said.
Another cleric from the seminary Maulana M Sufiyana also said that such marriages are against the Shariat.