Must a wife return to her husband who abandoned her and secretly married another woman, and refuses to divorce her, especially since she fears he might be bewitched or that she might regret the separation, and given that she has a child with him?

The husband's harshness and abandonment contradict the command to treat his wife kindly. The wife has a right to sexual intimacy, and abstaining from it for a period that harms her is forbidden. Similarly, abandoning her without a legitimate Sharia reason is not permissible. She must be patient, pray, advise her husband kindly, remind him of Allah, and seek help from some righteous and virtuous people.

If he refuses to respond, she has the right to seek a divorce and refer the matter to the judiciary. However, if she chooses to remain and be patient, she may do so. If the husband engages in an illicit relationship, it is a clear sin. If he marries another woman through a valid marriage, the first wife is not permitted to ask for the divorce of the second wife, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade a woman from asking for the divorce of her sister.

If it is highly probable that the husband is bewitched, he should be advised to seek Ruqyah (Islamic exorcism), either by performing it himself or by having some righteous and virtuous people perform it for him.