Mahr of Rs. 27.50

Where has this Mahr of Rs. 27.50 that is in force in Mauritius originated from? It is questionable as to whether this practice should be continued with. If it originated from the Shari’ah, there is no doubt that it should not be abandoned. However, if this is not proven by the Shari’ah, then it is not good to continue with this practice. Long ago, Rs. 27.50 was a large sum of money. People of the former times said that there was a time when sovereign of gold had the value of Rs. 5.00. In those times, Rs. 27.50 was equivalent to 5 1/2 gold sovereigns. It seems that the people of a certain place had fixed it as a facility or it was the value of Mahr Fatimi. If we evaluate Mahr Fatimi nowadays, the value is Rs.75000. Therefore, we do not see any reason to continue with a Mahr of Rs. 27.50 or Rs. xx 27.50.

[English version of "Mahar de Rs 27.50" – Al Jamiat – Vol.3 No.7]