Q. What is the status of a levirate marriage in Islam?
A. Levirate marriage is a type of marriage in which the brother of a deceased man is obliged to marry his brother’s widow, and the widow is obliged to marry her deceased husband’s brother.
The concept of a levirate marriage is not permissible in Islam. A person cannot be forced to marry someone. Allah Ta’ala mentions in the Quran:
“O you who believe, it is not lawful for you to inherit women by compulsion” (Nisaa’)
However, a person may marry his brother’s widow by mutual consent.
Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Mufti Ismaeel Bassa