Is it permissible to demand gold and belongings after agreeing to end the engagement, with a desire to avoid a family rift?

An engagement is a promise to marry and can be annulled for a valid reason. The jewelry (shabakah) given by the suitor to his fiancée is customarily considered part of the mahr (dower) and must be returned to the suitor if the engagement is broken before the marriage contract (aqd). As for gifts, scholars differ regarding the ruling on their return. If the annulment leads to a severance of kinship ties (qati’at rahim), the sin is not on the one who annulled the engagement, but on the one who severed the ties. Wisdom should be exercised to avoid such severance.