MARDAN: A bride in the Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa made history when she requested that her husband send her Rs 100,000 worth of books as a ‘Haq Mehr’.
We may have heard of brides requesting cash, land, or their favorite jewelry as ‘Haq Mehr’ from their husbands in Pakistan, but we may not have heard of a bride requesting books instead.
Naila Shamal, a 31-year-old resident of the Tangi region of North Safi Charsadda, set an example by requesting books from her husband as “Haq Mehr” to stress the value of education while also breaking society’s boring customs.
Haq Mehr is the mandatory payment made by a man to his future wife-to-be in the form of money, jewelry, household goods, furniture, and/or any other form of the property upon taking her hand in marriage.
Her husband, Dr. Sajjad Jwandun, is a resident of Mardan’s Bhai Khan neighborhood. Dr. Jwandun earned his Ph.D. in Pashto, and Naila is currently working on hers.
Shamal can be seen in a bridal gown sharing a significant message in a viral video on Twitter. “As you are all aware, I have demanded Rs100,000 in books for Haq Mehr,” she says.
“One explanation for this is that we cannot afford lavish gifts in our country due to rising inflation. However, it is also important to eradicate harmful customs from our society,” she says.
A bride Naila Shamal in Mardan KPK, Pakistan demanded books in Haq Mehr, worth 100k. The bride and the groom both are writers.
How much you love books? 😍 pic.twitter.com/zTQAVncYkF
— Mona Farooq Ahmad (@MFChaudhryy) March 16, 2021
