What is the ruling regarding a woman who married a second man without being divorced from her first husband, who had been absent and had been harassing their daughter, and then it later became clear that the second husband was stingy and shirked responsibility, especially given that the first husband now wishes to return?

The issue boils down to the fact that the apostasy of one who abandons prayer and the annulment of their marriage contract are matters of scholarly disagreement. If scholars have issued a fatwa (religious edict) to the woman to that effect, there is no blame upon her for acting upon their fatwa. The separation becomes effective upon the expiration of the waiting period ('iddah). If the 'iddah expires while he is still abandoning prayer, she becomes irrevocably separated from him, and she is then permitted to marry another. It is preferable to obtain a civil divorce. The 'iddah for a menstruating woman is three menstrual cycles, for a young girl and a woman who has reached menopause it is three months, and for a pregnant woman it is until she gives birth.

If the husband abandons prayer after consummation or a valid seclusion that necessitates the 'iddah, the matter depends on the expiration of the 'iddah. If he repents before its expiration, she remains his wife. If he does not, the annulment of the marriage becomes clear upon the expiration of the 'iddah.

If the first husband continues to abandon prayer until her 'iddah expires, then her second marriage is valid, and she cannot return to the first husband unless the second one divorces her or dies. However, if the first husband returns to prayer before her 'iddah expires, her second marriage is invalid, and she must separate from him and observe an 'iddah from him, then return to her first husband.

A man's molestation of his daughter or his wife's daughter, or his prolonged absence from her, does not necessitate separation. However, she has the right to seek divorce or khul' (a form of divorce initiated by the wife) due to his immorality and harm to her.