The Nikkah Loophole
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Reporter Tanita Rahmani realizes a small detail—blue ink instead of black on a marriage contract—means her marriage was never legally registered. That revelation sends her on a personal and investigative journey into the legal gray zone where many Muslim marriages exist: recognized by faith, but invisible to the law. From overlooked paperwork in New York to courtroom battles in the UK, this episode unpacks what happens when a nikkah isn’t enough, and asks: who decides if a marriage is a marriage?
Episode Credits
Tanita Rahmani
Reporter and Producer
Najib Aminy
Producer
Salman Ahad Khan
Producer, Story Editor, Sound Designer, and Composer
Alexander Overington
Sound Designer and Composer
Sohaira Siddiqui
Host
Sarah Qari
Consulting Editor
Heba Elorbany
Fact Checker
Lina Jaradat
Illustrator
Suggested Reading
Akhtar, Rajnaara C. 2015. “Unregistered Muslim Marriages: An Emerging Culture of Celebrating Rites and Compromising Rights.” In Marriage Rites and Rights, edited by Joanna Miles, Perveez Mody, and Rebecca Probert, 167–192.
Ali, Shaheen Sardar, Justin Jones, and Ayesha Shahid. 2020. “To Register or Not to Register? Reflections on Muslim Marriage Practices in Britain.” In Naveiñ Reet: Nordic Journal of Law and Social Research 10 (2020): 41–66.