A house recorded as dower in the Nikahnama is owed, despite a ‘sale’ between the couple before the Nikah

Judgment at a glance

Legal issue

Can the dower entry in a registered Nikahnama (a five-marla house in Column 16) be set aside on the assumption that a property sale from the husband to the wife ten days before the Nikah was really payment of that dower?

Decision

No. The registered Nikahnama carries a presumption of truth; it recorded the house as dower with no note that it had already been paid. The husband never pleaded that the earlier sale discharged the dower; his written statement said no dower was ever settled and that he had been deceived into the sale, a contradictory stance he could not change at trial, and evidence beyond the pleadings has no value. A man may sell property to a woman he later marries, but without pleading and proof the Nikahnama prevails. The appellate court's finding, based on assumption, was set aside and the Family Court's decree for the house restored; the concurrent award of dowry articles or Rs. 200,000 was left undisturbed.

Key principle

A registered Nikahnama's dower entry is presumed true; a husband who says the dower was already paid by an earlier transfer must plead and prove it, and cannot rely on a contradictory case or on assumption.

Outcome

Allowed

Relevant law

Constitution of Pakistan 1973, Art. 199

Why it matters

• Husbands claiming dower was paid earlier must plead and prove it; the Nikahnama is presumed correct.
• Record any advance payment of dower in the Nikahnama itself.
• Compare 2025 LHC 6632, where a transfer soon after marriage was proved to be dower.

Cite as: Mst. Saima Rani v. Addl. District Judge, etc., 2025 LHC 6341, Lahore High Court, W.P. No. 11759 of 2024, decided 14 October 2025

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