Cleric Calls Omar Abdullah-Nidhi Razdan Marriage Non-Islamic

A Bareilly cleric, Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi, has given his religious view on the marriage of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to journalist Nidhi Razdan, stating that under Islamic law such a union would not be considered a valid nikah.

According to the cleric, Islam sets certain principles and conditions for marriage, or nikah. One of the essential requirements is that both the bride and the groom must be Muslim. If either of them is not, a nikah cannot take place.

Razvi noted that Omar Abdullah is a Muslim, while Nidhi Razdan is not. On this basis, he said a Muslim man cannot enter into a nikah with a non-Muslim woman. He added that a marriage of this kind would not be recognised as a nikah from an Islamic perspective and would instead be treated as an impermissible marriage.

He further explained that the situation could have been different had Nidhi Razdan embraced Islam before the nikah. In that case, he said, the union could have been declared lawful. However, since that has not happened, he maintained that the marriage would be considered unlawful under this religious view.

The remarks have drawn attention because of the prominence of the individuals involved and the sensitivity surrounding interfaith marriages.