The parties were married on 21 September 2004 and had four children. Their marriage had been harmonious for the first eight years, but, in October 2012, the defendant, with the plaintiff's permission, left the parties' home to work in Jakarta. At the end of 2013, the defendant returned to Sawahlunto but, for no reason apparent to the plaintiff, chose to live at his parents' home rather than with the plaintiff and their children. The parties had remained separated since. For the past three years, the defendant had also failed to provide the plaintiff with any financial assistance. The plaintiff's attempts to reconcile with the defendant had failed. The plaintiff submitted to the court that the defendant's conduct had repudiated sub-arts (1), (2) and (4) of the parties' marriage vows (taklik talak). The plaintiff, therefore, requested that the court grant her an irrevocable divorce for a fee (talak satu khul'i).
Despite the defendant's absence, the court, pursuant to art 19(f) of Government Regulation No. 9 of 1975, and art 116(f) of the Compilation of Islamic Laws, acceded to the plaintiff's request on the grounds of ongoing conflict. The court also cited Ar-Rum verse 21 from the Qur'an, as well as art 1 of Law No. 1 of 1974 on Marriage, regarding the supposed tranquility of marriage.