Q: Can a husband/father not allow his family to attend his wife’s and children’s grandparents remembrance ceremony, because they were not Muslim, and can he threaten to divorce and disown his family if they choose to attend, knowing that this is also family? Does Islam prohibit this?
A: A wife has to take permission from her husband before leaving the home even to visit her own parents, under normal circumstances; hence, by extending that reasoning, the husband will have the right to disallow his wife from attending any function of the parents, whether they (parents) are Muslim or non-Muslim. The threat of divorce will be valid in shariah, though we advise the husband to refrain from attaching talaaq to such circumstances, or threatening to disown his family. Furthermore, Islam does not encourage or recognize ‘remembrance ceremonies’, so that’s another valid reason for the husband’s refusal.
And Allah knows best
Answer by: Moulana Shaheen Ismail
Checked and approved by: Mufti Siraj Desai