Russia’s Islamic Council issues a fatwa allowing polygamy under strict conditions

Russia, Thekabarnews.com—The Ulema Council of the Russian Federation has issued a landmark fatwa that allows Muslim males to enter up to four religious marriages at the same time. This is a big change for religion in Russia.

The Ulema Council’s decision holds significant importance for the Muslim population in Russia. The fatwa talks about religious rites that follow Islamic practice. However, Russian civil law doesn’t recognize polygamous marriages.

According to the ruling, a Muslim man can marry a second, third, or fourth woman through religious marriage procedures. He must meet a tight set of conditions.

Conditions for having more than one religious marriage

The fatwa lists several important duties: 

• The husband must be fair and equal to all of his wives. 
• He must give each woman the same amount of money. 
• Each wife needs her place to live. 
• The husband must spend the same amount of time with each of them. 
• Before signing the contract, every potential wife must know about any current marriages.

The verdict makes it plain that a man cannot go through with a polygamous marriage if he doesn’t meet these requirements.

The council also said that in some cases, like when a wife can’t or doesn’t want to have kids, religious reasons may allow polygamy.

The news has gotten people talking about women’s rights, religious freedom, and the difference between religious practice and civil legislation. 

People who study this say that Islamic law allows polygamy under certain conditions. However, how it is used varies a lot from country to country and community to community.

They say that the verdict gives Muslims who want to follow Islamic rules a clear path to do so. However, those who oppose it question the practical application of justice and equality.

As the number of Muslims in Russia grows, religious leaders seem to be making Islamic law clearer on family issues. We don’t know yet what the long-term societal effects of this choice will be.