What is the punishment for a husband if he refuses to acknowledge his wife's right to sexual intercourse?

A husband's abstinence from conjugal relations with his wife is considered īlāʾ. This is when a capable husband swears an oath to abstain from intercourse with his wife forever or for more than four months, based on the Almighty's saying: (For those who swear to abstain from their wives, there is a waiting period of four months. Then, if they return [to their wives], indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.) This is forbidden because it is an oath to abandon an obligation. Īlāʾ is constituted by swearing not to have intercourse at all or for a period exceeding four months, or by making it conditional on abandoning an obligation or committing a forbidden act. Jurists have analogized to this the case of a husband who abstains from intercourse with his wife to harm her, without an oath, for more than four months. The ruling is: If he has intercourse with his wife within the period, he has returned. If he refuses after the period, the judge orders him to divorce if the woman requests it. If he refuses, the judge divorces her on his behalf.