The Right to Marry in Islam: Scrutinizing the Customs of Marriages in the Pashtun Belt of Pakistan

Abstract

Marriage is one of the Islamic personal practices which the Prophet (pbuh) encouraged within the Muslim Ummah (community). Especially for those who could afford it. An eminent relationship has been observed between Islam and the custom of the Pakhtun people. In Pakhtun apart from Islamic injunctions, the Pakhtunwali (pakhtun social organization) serves as a pillar of society and tends to bring social harmony and integrity through the socio-cultural, economic, religious and political aspects of Pakhtuns living in their demarcated territory. The current study focuses on different customs of Pakhtun which have been misconceived with regard to Islamic injunctions and which are the prevalent laws of the Pakhtun and of course the regulator of Pakhtunwali. The research particularly emphasizes customs of marriage which are barriers to marriages in contemporary Pakhtun Muslim society. The paper juxtaposes the Pakhtun customary practices relating to marriage with Islamic injunctions. In order to do so, different types of respondents in the area of Peshawar Pakistan were interviewed. In the end, the paper recommends that Prophetic traditions should be introduced in marriages in the Pakhtun area of Pakistan.

Keywords: Human Rights, Shariah and Law, Pakistan KPK, Family Law, Marriage

JEL Classification: K36