The question (10 marks)
"A, a Sunni Muslim, married B in 2015. In 2019, while B was alive and the marriage subsisted, A married B's younger sister C in a ceremony before a qazi with no witnesses present; the marriage was consummated and a son was born. In 2023 A stopped maintaining C and the child, saying the marriage was void." Discuss the validity of the marriage between A and C, its legal effects, and whether C and the child can claim maintenance.
MU problem pattern on kinds of Muslim marriage; built on the Unit 1 chapter, the Chand Patel and Ghulam Kubra readings (DU extracts) and the KLE/TNDALU accounts of the impediments.
Plan your answer on paper before you look at the authorities — issue first, then the rule, then apply it to these facts.
It tests Unit 1 · Sources, Schools, Marriage and Mehr under Muslim Law of Family Law I (Muslim, Parsi and Christian Law; Indian Succession Act).
Authorities you will need
- Chand Patel v Bismillah Begum (2008)
- Ghulam Kubra Bibi v Mohammad Shafi (1940)
- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023, s. 144 (successor of CrPC s. 125)
How an answer is marked
A full-marks answer names the issue in one line, states the rule with its section, cites the authority, applies it to these facts and concludes — in that order. The app's model answer for this question is written in exactly that shape, with a checklist to mark your own attempt against.