MFLO-1961-and-DMMA-1939-MCQs judiciary
63 questions
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Question 1 of 63
Under section 1(2), the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961 extends to the whole of Pakistan and applies to:
ExplanationSection 1(2) has extraterritorial reach: it follows Muslim citizenship, not mere presence in or residence within Pakistan.
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Question 2 of 63
Under section 6(3), the Arbitration Council formed to consider a polygamy application may grant permission if satisfied that the proposed marriage is:
ExplanationSection 6(3) sets 'necessary and just' as the substantive standard, and permits the Council to attach conditions to any grant.
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Question 3 of 63
How many grounds for dissolution are listed in section 2 of the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939, as it now stands with amendments?
ExplanationThe original seven clauses (i) to (viii), plus clause (ix) (any other valid Muslim-law ground), were later joined by clause (iia) - inserted by the MFLO itself in 1961 - and clause (viia), lian, inserted by the Protection of Women Act, 2006.
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Question 4 of 63
Under the proviso to section 2(1)(b), where the Chairman of the Union Council is a non-Muslim, or wishes to make an application to the Arbitration Council himself, or is unable to act:
ExplanationThe proviso ensures a Muslim Chairman presides over Arbitration Council matters under the Ordinance, and also handles the conflict-of-interest case where the Chairman himself is a party.
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Question 5 of 63
The Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 is which Act of 1939?
ExplanationThe Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act is Act VIII of 1939, dated 17 March 1939 - the same Roman numeral, coincidentally, as the later MFLO, VIII of 1961.
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Question 6 of 63
Section 2(viia), the ground of lian, was inserted into the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 by:
ExplanationThe 2006 Act relocated lian from the Qazf Ordinance's section 14 (which had provided a criminal-law dissolution procedure) into this Act as a civil ground for dissolution, on the reasoning that dissolution of marriage has no place in a penal statute.
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Question 7 of 63
Under section 3(b) and (c), the persons so named must be given notice of the suit and:
ExplanationSections 3(b) and (c) give the husband's prospective heirs both notice and a genuine right to be heard, reflecting their real interest in whether the marriage is dissolved.
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Question 8 of 63
Under section 5(4), contravention of the reporting duty in section 5(3) is punishable with simple imprisonment up to three months, or fine up to:
ExplanationSection 5(4) sets this specific penalty, distinct from the penalty structure for polygamy and talaq offences elsewhere in the Ordinance.
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Question 9 of 63
Under section 2(iv), a wife may seek dissolution on the ground that the husband has failed, without reasonable cause, to perform his marital obligations for a period of:
ExplanationSection 2(iv) requires both the absence of reasonable cause AND a three-year duration.
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Question 10 of 63
Under section 10, where the nikah nama or marriage contract specifies no details about the mode of payment of dower, the ENTIRE amount is presumed to be payable:
ExplanationSection 10 is a default rule that operates only in the absence of contractual specification - it does not override an express prompt/deferred split agreed by the parties.
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Question 11 of 63
Under section 5, nothing in the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 affects a married woman's right under Muslim law to:
ExplanationSection 5 is a savings clause protecting dower rights specifically - the Act's dissolution grounds do not affect or diminish them.
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Question 12 of 63
Under the first proviso to section 4, after renunciation or conversion, the woman:
ExplanationThe first proviso preserves her access to the ordinary section 2 grounds - conversion does not open a separate, easier route to dissolution, nor does it close off the existing ones.
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Question 13 of 63
Section 6 of the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 was:
ExplanationSection 6 stands repealed, so the Act's substantive content now runs only through section 5, with section 6 shown as '[Repealed]' in the current text.
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Question 14 of 63
Sections 12 and 13 of the MFLO, which originally amended the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 and the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 respectively, were:
ExplanationBoth consequential-amendment sections were omitted by the 1981 Ordinance, though the substantive amendment they had made to the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act - inserting ground (iia), additional wife taken in contravention of the MFLO - remains part of that Act's text.
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Question 15 of 63
The Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961 is which Ordinance of 1961?
ExplanationThe MFLO is Ordinance VIII of 1961, promulgated by the President on 2 March 1961 and published in the Gazette on 15 July 1961.
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Question 16 of 63
Under section 9(1), if a husband fails to maintain his wife adequately, she may, in addition to any other legal remedy, apply to the Chairman, who shall:
ExplanationSection 9(1) routes maintenance disputes through the same Arbitration Council mechanism used for polygamy applications, and expressly preserves the wife's other legal remedies.
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Question 17 of 63
Under section 3(a), in a suit relying on the missing-husband ground, the plaint must state the names and addresses of persons who would have been:
ExplanationSection 3(a) requires a hypothetical heirship determination as of the filing date, which then drives the notice requirement in section 3(b).
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Question 18 of 63
Under section 3(1), the provisions of the MFLO have effect notwithstanding any law, custom or usage, and:
ExplanationSection 3(1) makes MFLO registration the exclusive regime, overriding any customary alternative.
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Question 19 of 63
Under section 7(5), if the wife is pregnant when talaq is pronounced, the talaq shall not be effective until the period mentioned in section 7(3) or:
ExplanationSection 7(5) extends the suspension period specifically to protect a pregnant wife, taking whichever of the two periods runs longer.
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Question 20 of 63
Under section 3(2), the provisions of which enactments do NOT apply to any Arbitration Council?
ExplanationSection 3(2) is a removal-of-doubt clause, confirming that an Arbitration Council under this Ordinance is NOT bound by ordinary court procedure or the general arbitration law.
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Question 21 of 63
Section 2(iia), inserted into the Act by the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961, allows dissolution on the ground that:
ExplanationSection 2(iia) directly links a wife's judicial-divorce right to the husband's unauthorised polygamy under MFLO section 6 - a clean example of the two federal statutes interlocking.
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Question 22 of 63
Under section 1(3), the Ordinance came into force on:
ExplanationSection 1(3) leaves commencement to notification; the notified date was 15 July 1961, the same date the Ordinance was published in the Gazette.
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Question 23 of 63
Under section 2(i), a wife may seek dissolution on the ground that the whereabouts of the husband have not been known for a period of:
ExplanationSection 2(i) is the 'missing husband' ground, subject to the six-month suspension proviso in section 2 proviso (b).
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Question 24 of 63
Under section 5(2), for the purpose of registration, the Union Council grants licences to persons to be called:
ExplanationSection 5(2) also caps the number: no more than one Nikah Registrar may be licensed for any one Ward.
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Question 25 of 63
Under section 7(4), within thirty days of receiving the talaq notice, the Chairman must:
ExplanationSection 7(4) obliges the Chairman to actively pursue reconciliation through the Arbitration Council, not merely to record the notice.
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Question 26 of 63
Under section 11(2), a breach of rules made under section 11 may be made punishable with simple imprisonment up to one month, or fine up to:
ExplanationThis is the smallest penalty ceiling in the Ordinance, reserved for breaches of subordinate rules rather than the substantive offences in sections 5, 6 and 7.
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Question 27 of 63
Under section 2(ix), a wife may also seek dissolution on:
ExplanationSection 2(ix) is a residual clause anchored specifically to Muslim law doctrine, not to the Court's general discretion.
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Question 28 of 63
Under section 6(1), a man may not, during the subsistence of an existing marriage, contract another marriage except:
ExplanationSection 6(1) requires prior WRITTEN Arbitration Council permission, and further provides that a marriage contracted without it shall not be registered under the Ordinance.
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Question 29 of 63
Under section 7(1), a man who wishes to divorce his wife must, as soon as may be after pronouncing talaq in any form whatsoever, give:
ExplanationSection 7(1) requires BOTH notice to the Chairman and a copy to the wife - a single pronouncement, however made, triggers this dual notice duty.
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Question 30 of 63
Under section 4, the renunciation of Islam by a married Muslim woman, or her conversion to another faith:
ExplanationSection 4 was enacted specifically to remove doubt on this point, as its long title states, rejecting the idea that apostasy or conversion automatically ends the marriage.
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Question 31 of 63
Under section 7(6), a wife whose marriage has been terminated by an effective talaq may remarry the same husband without an intervening marriage to a third person, UNLESS:
ExplanationSection 7(6) codifies the classical rule that a third effective talaq requires an intervening marriage (halala) before remarriage to the same husband is possible.
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Question 32 of 63
Under section 7(3), unless revoked earlier, a talaq shall not be effective until the expiration of how many days from delivery of the notice to the Chairman?
ExplanationThe ninety-day suspension of effect under section 7(3) is the Ordinance's central procedural safeguard for talaq, giving time for the reconciliation process under section 7(4).
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Question 33 of 63
Under section 9(2), a revision of the maintenance certificate lies to:
ExplanationSection 9(2) mirrors the polygamy revision route in section 6(4) - both go to the Collector.
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Question 34 of 63
Under section 8, where the right to divorce has been duly delegated to the wife (talaq-e-tafweed) and she wishes to exercise it, or where a party wishes to dissolve the marriage otherwise than by talaq:
ExplanationSection 8 extends the section 7 notice-and-reconciliation machinery to delegated divorce and other non-talaq dissolutions, rather than creating a separate procedure for them.
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Question 35 of 63
Under the second proviso to section 4, section 4 does NOT apply to a woman who:
ExplanationThe second proviso carves out reversion converts - a woman who became Muslim from another faith and later returns to that faith is treated differently from a born Muslim who leaves Islam.
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Question 36 of 63
Under section 11(1), rules to carry the MFLO into effect are made, for Cantonment areas, by the Federal Government, and for other areas, by:
ExplanationSection 11(1) splits rule-making authority along the same Cantonment/other-area line used for appointing the Chairman under section 2(1)(b).
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Question 37 of 63
Under section 6(4), a revision from the Arbitration Council's polygamy decision lies to:
ExplanationSection 6(4) provides revision to the Collector, whose decision is final and not open to challenge in any Court.
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Question 38 of 63
Comparing the two federal statutes: a husband's talaq is procedurally governed by section 7 of the MFLO, while a wife's judicial dissolution is governed by section 2 of the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939. The key structural difference is that:
ExplanationThis distinction - unilateral extrajudicial talaq versus wife-initiated judicial dissolution on proven grounds - is the basic architecture of Muslim divorce law in Pakistan as codified across these two federal statutes.
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Question 39 of 63
Under section 2(viii)(f), where the husband has more wives than one, cruelty includes his failure to treat them equitably in accordance with:
ExplanationSection 2(viii)(f) is a distinctly Quran-referencing ground, giving a wife in a polygamous marriage a cruelty-based route to dissolution independent of the MFLO's own polygamy-consent mechanism.
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Question 40 of 63
Under section 2(iii), a wife may seek dissolution on the ground that the husband has been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of:
ExplanationThe proviso to section 2 additionally requires that no decree be passed on this ground until the sentence has become final.
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Question 41 of 63
Under section 5(3), a marriage NOT solemnized by the Nikah Registrar must, for registration purposes, be:
ExplanationSection 5(3) extends the registration duty to whoever actually performed the nikah, even if that person is not the licensed Registrar.
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Question 42 of 63
Under the Explanation to section 2(viia), 'lian' means a situation where:
ExplanationThis Explanation in the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act matches, in substance, the procedure that had been set out in section 14 of the Qazf Ordinance before the 2006 relocation.
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Question 43 of 63
Under section 2, a decree for dissolution of marriage under this Act is available to:
ExplanationSection 2 is confined to the WIFE'S right to a judicial decree - the husband's unilateral talaq is governed instead by MFLO section 7.
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Question 44 of 63
Under section 9(1), where a husband has more wives than one and fails to maintain them equitably, the remedy under that section is available to:
ExplanationSection 9(1) allows any or all of multiple wives to apply, reflecting the equitable-treatment standard central to lawful polygamy.
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Question 45 of 63
Under section 2(ii), a wife may seek dissolution on the ground that the husband has neglected or failed to provide for her maintenance for a period of:
ExplanationSection 2(ii) requires two years of neglect or failure to maintain - shorter than the four-year missing-husband ground in clause (i).
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Question 46 of 63
Under section 2(1)(b), the 'Chairman' is the Chairman of the Union Council or a person appointed by:
ExplanationSection 2(1)(b) splits appointing authority by area type - Cantonment areas fall to the Federal Government, other areas to the Provincial Government.
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Question 47 of 63
Under section 5(1), every marriage solemnized under Muslim Law shall be:
ExplanationSection 5(1) makes registration mandatory for every Muslim marriage, not merely encouraged.
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Question 48 of 63
Under section 4, where a son or daughter of the propositus predeceases him, the children of that son or daughter, if living when succession opens, shall receive:
ExplanationSection 4 is the MFLO's best-known reform - it introduces representational (per stirpes) succession for predeceased children's children, departing from the classical Sunni exclusion of orphaned grandchildren where a son of the propositus survives.
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Question 49 of 63
Under section 9(3), any amount payable as maintenance under section 9, if not paid in due time, is recoverable:
ExplanationSection 9(3) gives maintenance certificates the same enforcement teeth as the accelerated dower under section 6(5)(a) - recovery as an arrear of land revenue.
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Question 50 of 63
Under the proviso to section 3, which relatives of the husband must be cited as parties even if they are not heirs?
ExplanationThe proviso to section 3 singles out paternal uncle and brother specifically, regardless of their actual heirship status on the facts.
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Question 51 of 63
Under section 5(6), any person may, on payment of the prescribed fee, inspect at the office of the Union Council the marriage record or:
ExplanationSection 5(6) is a public-access provision for the marriage register, subject to the prescribed fee.
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Question 52 of 63
Under section 2(1)(a), the 'Arbitration Council' consists of the Chairman and:
ExplanationSection 2(1)(a) sets a small, party-nominated body; the proviso deals with the case where a party fails to nominate a representative in time.
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Question 53 of 63
Under section 7(2), failure to give notice under section 7(1) is punishable with simple imprisonment up to one year, or fine up to:
ExplanationThis matches the penalty for unauthorised polygamy under section 6(5)(b), reflecting the Ordinance's parallel treatment of both procedural failures.
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Question 54 of 63
Under the proviso to section 2(1)(a), if a party fails to nominate a representative within the prescribed time:
ExplanationThis proviso prevents one party from stalling the Arbitration Council simply by not nominating.
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Question 55 of 63
Section 4 of the MFLO is commonly understood to modify classical Sunni inheritance law on:
ExplanationUnder unreformed classical doctrine, a grandchild whose parent died before the propositus could be excluded entirely by a surviving son; section 4 gives such grandchildren a representational share instead.
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Question 56 of 63
Under section 6(5)(b), a man who contracts another marriage without Arbitration Council permission is, on conviction upon complaint, punishable with simple imprisonment up to one year, or fine up to:
ExplanationThis penalty in section 6(5)(b) is separate from, and additional to, the immediate dower-acceleration consequence in section 6(5)(a).
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Question 57 of 63
Under section 6(2), an application for permission to contract another marriage must state the reasons for the proposed marriage and:
ExplanationSection 6(2) requires disclosure of whether existing-wife consent has been secured, though consent itself is not made an absolute precondition of permission.
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Question 58 of 63
Under section 2(v), a wife may seek dissolution on the ground that the husband was impotent at the time of the marriage and continues to be so, subject to a proviso allowing the husband:
ExplanationProviso (c) to section 2 gives the husband a one-year window, on his own application, to prove he is no longer impotent before a decree may be passed on this ground.
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Question 59 of 63
Under section 2(viii)(a), cruelty includes making the wife's life miserable by cruelty of conduct:
ExplanationSection 2(viii)(a) expressly extends cruelty beyond physical ill-treatment, capturing psychological or conduct-based cruelty as well.
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Question 60 of 63
Under section 2(vi), a wife may seek dissolution on the ground that the husband has been insane for a period of two years, or is suffering from:
ExplanationSection 2(vi) combines a duration-based ground (two years' insanity) with two open-ended medical grounds (leprosy, virulent venereal disease) requiring no minimum duration.
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Question 61 of 63
Under section 6(5)(a), a man who contracts another marriage WITHOUT Arbitration Council permission must immediately pay:
ExplanationSection 6(5)(a) accelerates the WHOLE dower obligation - both prompt and deferred - as an immediate consequence of unauthorised polygamy, recoverable as an arrear of land revenue if unpaid.
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Question 62 of 63
Under section 2(vii), a wife given in marriage by her father or other guardian before the age of sixteen years may repudiate the marriage before attaining the age of eighteen, provided that:
ExplanationThis is the 'option of puberty' (khiyar-ul-bulugh) ground, and non-consummation is an express precondition under the proviso to section 2(vii).
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Question 63 of 63
How many sub-grounds of cruelty are listed in section 2(viii)?
ExplanationSection 2(viii) lists habitual assault or making life miserable by cruelty of conduct; association with women of evil repute or leading an infamous life; attempting to force an immoral life; disposing of or obstructing her property rights; obstructing her religious observance; and, in a polygamous marriage, inequitable treatment under the Quran's injunctions.
0 / 63 answered
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