What is the ruling if the husband says, 'You are divorced contingent upon a thousand' ('anta taliq 'ala alf')?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Khul' (Redemption Divorce)
Primary text
The established transmission (Mansus) from Ahmad is that the divorce takes effect as a revocable divorce, similar to the statement, 'You are divorced, and you owe me a thousand.' This is supported by a narration where if a man says this to his wife and she remains silent, the divorce is revocable, and he retains the right of return. The justification for this is that 'ala (upon/contingent upon) is not typically used for conditionality or compensation, as evidenced by the usage in transactions like, 'I sold you my garment upon (for) a Dinar,' which is invalid. The view supporting the revocable divorce holds that the husband pronounced an unconditional divorce and imposed a consideration that she had not offered, resulting in a revocable divorce without compensation.
Supporting text
Al-Qadi, in 'Al-Mujarrad,' stated that this implies a condition, interpreted as 'If you guarantee me a thousand, then you are divorced.' If she guarantees the thousand, the divorce is irrevocable (ba'in); otherwise, it does not occur. This latter view, where acceptance of the condition establishes the divorce as Khul' and without acceptance the divorce does not occur, is the position of Abu Hanifa and Al-Shafi'i, and aligns with the apparent meaning in Al-Kharqi's writing, due to the use of 'ala' to mean conditionality, as evidenced by Quranic verses (Quran 28:27, 18:94, 18:66) and analogy to marriage contracts stipulating dower.