Her husband is mentally ill and hurts her. How should she deal with him? Does he have any rights?
Question

                A woman is asking if her husband has rights over her. He is mentally ill. He does not interfere in the matters of their home. He also accuses her of being disloyal. She is far from him though. He is a father for 10 individuals. They got married without any help from his side. This made her very upset and she does not want to even talk with him. Please clarify the Islamic ruling on this matter.
Praise be to Allah.
    Firstly: 

    We ask Allah to heal your husband sooner 
    rather than later, and we ask Allah to increase your reward for your 
    patience and forbearance. This calamity with which Allah has tested you 
    will bring reward if you are patient and seek reward for it. 

    It was narrated that Suhayb said: The 
    Messenger of Allah  (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: 
    “How wonderful is the situation of the believer, for all his affairs are 
    good. If something good happens to him, he gives thanks for it and that is 
    good for him; if something bad happens to him, he bears it with patience, 
    and that is good for him. This does not apply to anyone but the believer.”

    Narrated by Muslim (2999). 

    And it was narrated from Abu Sa’eed 
    al-Khudri and Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet  (peace and blessings of 
    Allah be upon him) said: “No exhaustion, pain, anxiety, grief, harm or 
    distress befalls a Muslim, not even a thorn that pricks him, but Allah will 
    expiate some of his sins thereby.” Narrated by al-Bukhari (5318) and Muslim 
    (2573). 

    Secondly: 

    In the case of your husband’s sickness, 
    either he is aware of what he is doing and saying, or he is not aware. If he 
    is aware, then he is accountable for what he says and does, and it is not 
    permissible for him to accuse you or to fail to raise his children; he must 
    do what Allah has enjoined upon him of acts of worship and obedience, and 
    not do that which Allah has forbidden. 

    In this case you must carry out all marital 
    duties and it is not permissible for you to neglect them.

    If he is not aware of what he is saying and 
    doing as a result of this sickness, then he is no longer accountable for 
    what he says and does. But if his actions affect the rights of others, then 
    the one whose right it is may take his right from your husband’s wealth or 
    from his guardians, such as if he transgresses against someone by killing 
    him or he damages his car and so on. 

    It was narrated from ‘Aishah that the 
    Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The Pen has 
    been lifted from three: from the sleeping person until he wakes up, from the 
    minor until he grows up, and from the insane person until he comes to his 
    senses.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (4398), al-Nasai (3432) and Ibn Majah 
    (2041); classed as saheeh by al-Albani in Saheeh Abi Dawood. 

    Ibn Hazm (may Allah have mercy on him) 
    said: 

    As for the one who has not yet reached 
    puberty, or who has reached puberty but has no discernment or reason, or has 
    lost his power of discernment after reaching puberty and being able to 
    discern, such people are not accountable and they are not allowed to dispose 
    of any of their wealth, because of the report that we have narrated from the 
    Messenger of Allaah  (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “The 
    Pen has been lifted from three”, in which he mentioned “from the minor until 
    he grows up, and from the insane person until he comes to his senses.” 

    Al-Muhalla 
    (7/200). 

    Ash-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy 
    on him) said:  

    As for the rational man, his opposite is the 
    insane man who has no reason, or the elderly man or elderly woman if they 
    have reached the age where they have lost the power of discernment, which is 
    known as senility. Such a person does not have to pray because he does not 
    have the mental capacity. 

    Majmoo’ al-Fatawa 
    (12/first question). 

    Please see scholarly comments on his behaviour and 
    its effects in the answer to question no. 
    73412. 

    With regard to his accusation that you have 
    sinned, if what you mean is an accusation of zina, then in the second case 
    he is not committing slander, because an important condition, namely reason, 
    is missing. Similarly, he cannot engage in li’an either. 

    In al-Mawsoo’ah al-Fiqhiyyah (33/11) 
    it says: 

    The fuqaha are unanimously agreed that in 
    order for a person to be regarded as committing slander, he (or she) must be 
    an adult of sound mind and acting on the basis of free will, whether male or 
    female, free or slave, Muslim or non-Muslim. 

    End quote. 

    To sum up: 

    You may either put up with what he is doing, 
    if he does not understand what he is doing because of his sickness and loss 
    of reason, or you may refer your case to the qadi to determine whether he 
    is fit to remain as your husband or the marriage may be annulled. 

    If he does understand what he is doing, then 
    you may either put up with what is happening or you may ask him for a 
    divorce, and if he refuses you may refer your case to the sharee’ah court to 
    arrange a separation. 

    And Allah knows best.