Pakistan, July 24 -- ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that refusing a woman her right to mehr (dower) or financial support based on infertility is illegal and unjustified. The court dismissed the husband's appeal and issued a strong warning against personal attacks on women in legal cases.

Chief Justice Yahya Afridi rejected the petition filed by Saleh Muhammad and fined him Rs500,000 for his behavior. The written verdict stated that he wrongly accused his wife of infertility and claimed she was "not a real woman." However, the court made it clear that infertility cannot be used as a reason to deny a woman's legal rights.

The ruling stated that the husband had abandoned his wife at her parents' home and remarried with...