Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
In Islam, it is sinful for either spouse—man or woman—to seek divorce without a valid reason. Marriage is a sacred contract witnessed by Allah, and breaking it without cause is considered a grave sin and breach of trust.
Responding to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:
The Hadith you have referred to refers to those rushing to seek divorce without any valid reason. Since marriage is a solemn contract, both parties have entered it by invoking the witness of Allah.
Therefore, seeking a divorce for no valid reason is a breach of contract and, hence, a grave sin. Allah has ordered us to be faithful to our pledges and contracts. Allah says that: {(Believers are) those who faithfully uphold their trust and promises.} (Al-Mu’minun 23:8)
Furthermore, marriage is the foundation of a robust society, and we should work hard to preserve it.
It is, therefore, a grave offense by either spouse, husband, or wife to break this foundation. Seeking divorce without any valid reason cannot be tolerated. It applies equally to men and women.
It is wrong for anyone to say that while a wife must be faithful to her contract, a man can divorce his wife for frivolous reasons. Such is a grave offense against Allah and the sacred law of the Sharia.
As Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim states, projecting wrong opinions or statements as the laws of Allah is akin to associating partners with Allah, which is the foremost of the major sins in Islam. Mind you, it is, therefore, an unforgivable sin.
In conclusion, resorting to divorce for no valid reason is a grave sin. No matter who commits it, whether a husband or his wife, the sin is a sin.
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Almighty Allah knows best.