Sahih Bukhari, Book of Tricks, Hadith 6968:
Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A virgin should not be married till she is asked for her consent; and the matron should not be married till she is asked whether she agrees to marry or not." It was asked, "O Allah's Apostle! How will she (the virgin) express her consent?" He said, "By keeping silent." Some people said that if a virgin is not asked for her consent and she is not married, and then a man, by playing a trick presents two false witnesses that he has married her with her consent and the judge confirms his marriage as a true one, and the husband knows that the witnesses were false ones, then there is no harm for him to consummate his marriage with her and the marriage is regarded as valid.
Actually, the issue of the SILENCE of a virgin girl is only a by-product. It is the whole Islamic system of so-called Islamic Hijab and Islamic Modesty that ultimately result in issues like the SILENCE of virgin girls, false testimonies and many more such issues which create hardships for women.
Firstly, Islam allows a father to marry his small minor daughter, without her consent, to any man (even if he is 50 years old man). Abu Bakr married 'Aisha to Muhammad when she was only 6 years old, and she had no ability to give her consent.
Islam is a religion which is anti-NATURE. It is in the nature of every girl to become an adult, indulge in LOVE of any boy of her own age group, and dream about him. This natural LOVE is the most precious and the most beautiful gift of nature.
But Islam kills this nature and compels a minor girl to stop talking and interacting and indulging in the love of any boy of her age group after her father had married her to an old person without her consent.
And then comes the case of an adult virgin girl. Here too, Islam is going against human nature, in the name of so-called modesty & decency. Again, Islam bans an adult virgin girl from interacting with boys and choosing the right person for her. In Hadith, Muhammad's companion married a woman after having one sight of a woman (link).
One can give her/his consent only after becoming familiar with the other. But this so-called CONSENT of a girl in Islam is nothing else than a DECEPTION. She (and, as well as, the boy) are never in a position to give their consent because they never become familiar with each other. How can one take the most important decision of his/her life after having one sight of another person?
Actually, all arranged marriages in Islam are like GAMBLING. If she is unlucky, then she may end up with an abusive husband for the rest of her life. If she doesn't like/love him, or if he doesn't match her mentally, then still she cannot get rid of him on her own. Yes, even Khul' خلع is also a right of the husband in Islam, and if he denies it, then no Islamic court can order him to set her free by giving her a divorce. Please read our article: Khul’ خلع (i.e. getting freedom from husband) is not a “right” of a woman, but it is still a “right” of a husband to either grant it or to deny it.
And this issue of the SILENCE of a virgin girl also exists only due to anti-natural rulings of Islamic Sharia.
In an Islamic system, most young girls are so much under the pressure of family and frightened that they don't even dare to speak up loudly (or to oppose the decision of their families loudly). Thus, these poor creatures have to suffer from this crime their entire lives, and they are being raped their entire lives by their so-called Muslim husbands.
And from this evil of silence, another evil also arises, where 2 witnesses got the power to falsely testify in front of a Judge in an Islamic court. Thus, they make her the wife of any bad person forcefully (even if she said NO to this marriage). And once she is declared as a wife, then it is a point of no return for her in Islam.
An excuse by Muslim preachers:
Some Muslim preachers came up with this excuse:
This hadith doesn't say so as "Some people" here is the usual expression of al-Bukhari when referring to the hanafi school of fiqh. This means this part of the text or narration isn't a hadith but a verdict or opinion of the hanafi school!
The issue with Ijtehaad (اجتهاد) in Islam is that all Ijtehaads are part of Islam. If the Ijtehaad is correct, then Muslims will get DOUBLE rewards. And if the Ijtehaad is wrong, then still Muslims will get the SINGLE rewards.
Thus, in this case, it means if a Muslim person does cheat and gets hands to a girl by bringing 2 false witnesses, still the people who support it, will get a single reward for this evil.
Moreover, practically it is indeed a truth that in such an Islamic system, the 2 witnesses indeed get the power to make one girl falsely wed a man.
Moreover, how much better are the remaining 3 Fiqhs than Hanafi one, while they have their own evils? Just look at it:
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " لاَ تُنْكَحُ الثَّيِّبُ حَتَّى تُسْتَأْمَرَ وَلاَ تُنْكَحُ الْبِكْرُ حَتَّى تُسْتَأْذَنَ وَإِذْنُهَا الصُّمُوتُ " . ... وَقَالَ بَعْضُ أَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ تَزْوِيجُ الأَبِ عَلَى الْبِكْرِ جَائِزٌ وَإِنْ كَرِهَتْ ذَلِكَ . وَهُوَ قَوْلُ مَالِكِ بْنِ أَنَسٍ وَالشَّافِعِيِّ وَأَحْمَدَ وَإِسْحَاقَ .
The Prophet said: "A matron should not be given in marriage until she is consulted, and a virgin should not be given in marriage until her permission is sought, and her silence is her permission." ... "And some people of Medina said, 'It is permissible for a father to marry his virgin daughter, even if she dislikes it.' This is the opinion of Malik ibn Anas, ash-Shafi'i, Ahmad, and Ishaq."
Grade: Sahih (Darussalam
This is nothing more than the legal rape of daughters and for this too, they will get a single reward.