UNDOUBTEDLY, dissolution of marriage is an unfortunate tragedy that continues to haunt isolated partners for years to come. However, the partner most susceptible to suspicion, most vulnerable to compromise and most likely to bear the brunt of such dissolution is invariably the female. Indeed, such dissolution carries not only unbearable consequences for her life — emotional stress, psychological trauma, and social stigma lasting a lifetime — but also strips her, often mercilessly, of the monetary entitlements envisioned for her under the relevant laws.

Yet this monetary disentitlement arises not from a want of adequate provisions in the law, but from the failure of family courts to fully comply with the mandatory provisions of family law. Before proceeding, then, it is important to understand the fine but crucial distinction between Khula and Dissolution of Marriage. Khula is a wife’s voluntary decision to renounce the marriage and pay compensation for release from the marital bond, whereas dissolution of marriage can be sought on grounds including cruelty, as stipulated in the Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act (DMMA), 1939. Notably, a........

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