Question Summary:
Touching ones stepmother with lust

Question Detail:

If a man’s leg touches his stepmother’s leg with lust/ unlawful intention. Does this break his fathers and stepmother’s marriage or does it break his own marriage with his wife? When the legs touched, both had clothing on e.g: shalwar kamiz, and there was no skin contact.

Answer :

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

According to the Hanafī Mazhab, hurmah-al-musāharah will be established between a man and a woman when one of them touches the other with lust; however, if one does not touch with lust, hurmah-al-musāharahwill not be established.
وكما ثبتت هذه الحرمة بالوطء تثبت بالمسّ...[1]
The Fuqahā (jurists’) further state that the hurmat will only be established if they touch without the barrier of a thick cloth. The way to decide whether a cloth is regarded to be thick or not is to see whether one feels the heat of the body of the person or not; if one does feel the heat then the hurmat will be established otherwise it won’t.
 
ثم المس إنما يوجب حرمة المصاهرة إذا لم يكن بينهما ثوب ، أما إذا كان بينهما ثوب فإن كان صفيقا لا يجد الماس حرارة الممسوس لا تثبت حرمة المصاهرة [2]
 
وَإِنْ كَانَ بَيْنَهُمَا حَائِلٌ فَإِنْ وَصَلَ حَرَارَةُ الْبَدَنِ إلَى يَدِهِ تَثْبُتُ الْحُرْمَةُ، وَإِلَّا فَلَا[3]
 
قوله ( بحائل لا يمنع الحرارة ) أي ولو بحائل الخ فلو كان مانعا لا تثبت الحرمة كذا في أكثر الكتب [4]
 
In your scenario, you mentioned that both of you were wearing some clothing. You will have to decide whether or not you could feel the heat of her body or not.
The next thing one needs to understand is what is meant by shahwat (lust). The Fuqahā state that the erection of the male private part is necessary for shahwat to be established. If it is already erect, then further erection would be necessary.  
 
المس بشهوة ان تنتشر الالة او تزداد انتشارا هو الصحيح  [5]
 
ومن مسته امرأة بشهوة أي بدون حائل أو بحائل رقيق تصل معه حرارة البدن إلى اليد[6]
 
و حد الشهوة ان تنتشر آلته ...اذا لم يكن منتشرا قبل هذا. و اذا كان منتشرا, فان كان يزداد قوة و شدة بالنظر و اللمس كان ذلك عن شهوة و ما لا فلا[7]
 
The Fuqahā have also placed the condition that the lust/ shahwat be at the exact time of touching. Not after this time.
 
قال في الفتح وقوله بشهوة في موضع الحال فيفيد اشتراط الشهوة حال المس فلو مس بغير شهوة ثم اشتهى عن ذلك المس لا تحرم عليه[8]
In the light of the aforementioned texts, hurmah-al-musāharahwill be established when a man touches his stepmother, if the following conditions are found:
·        He touched her without the barrier of a thick cloth. If the cloth was so thin that the man could feel the heat of the other’s body, hurmah-al-musāharahwill still take place

·        He experienced lust when he touched her 
If hurmah-al-musāharahis established, your stepmother will be harām on your father and he should give her a clear divorce whereas it will not affect your marriage with your wife.[9] [10] [11]
 
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Mawlana Saanwal ibn Muhammad,
UK
Student Darul Iftaa
Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Hussain Kadodia