It should be clearly understood that khula‘, in Islamic law, is a contract (agreement) and is not valid without the consent of the husband. Therefore, if a woman obtains a one-sided khula through a court without the permission or approval of her husband, and the husband has neither issued a divorce nor accepted the khula, then such a court-issued khula is not Islamically valid according to the Hanafi school of jurisprudence. In this situation, the marriage remains intact, and it is permissible for the husband and wife to continue living together as spouses.
However, it is necessary to understand the distinction that if proven oppression or abuse by the husband actually exists, and the woman establishes this with evidence in court in accordance with Shariah requirements, and the court summons the husband but he does not appear, then despite the husband’s wrongdoing and non-appearance, the court is granted the authority to dissolve the marriage (faskh al-nikah – Not Khula).
In such a case, one irrevocable divorce (ṭalāq bā’in) takes effect, meaning that the husband has no right of revocation, and after the completion of the waiting period (‘iddah), the woman becomes free. This situation is not khula‘, but rather dissolution of marriage (faskh al-nikah), which is Islamically valid. Thereafter, if both spouses mutually agree, have hope that they will adhere to the commands of Allah, and believe that such circumstances will not recur, they may remarry each other with a new marriage contract (Nikah) and a new mahr.
However, if a court issues a one-sided khula‘ decision merely because the husband did not appear in court, without any proven oppression, and solely on the basis of the woman’s demand for khula‘ or unsubstantiated allegations, then such a khula‘ is not Islamically valid. Moreover, the oppression that is considered valid is only that which is recognized as oppression according to the Qur’an and Sunnah.
Since, according to your statement, you neither issued a divorce nor consented to the khula‘, if the khula‘ was purely a one-sided court decision and no oppression on the part of the husband (you) was established in court, then there was no Shariah basis for dissolution of the marriage. Consequently, the marriage remains valid, and it is Islamically permissible for both of you to live together as husband and wife.
Even if oppression on your part was proven in court, only one irrevocable divorce (ṭalāq bā’in) would have taken place. In this case, you cannot return to each other without a new nikah, and if you choose to remarry, it must be with a new mahr. After such remarriage, the husband will have only two remaining divorces, because one divorce has already occurred through the court’s decision.
Furthermore, this renewed marriage does not have to be conducted in a mosque or publicly announced as the first nikah usually is. It may be performed at home, in the presence of family members and witnesses, by any qualified Islamic scholar.
