Could you confirm if there is an opinion of permissibility on crabs as per your Fatwa # 18321?
Answer:
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
We have been notified of a misconception which arouse from Fatwa number 18321 (http://askimam.org/fatwa/fatwa.php?askid=d04013b28a21924be02997357a7cff54).
The fatwa should have been worded differently. Although some contemporary scholars opine that a crab is fish and no consideration should be given to science, none of the classical scholars ever classified a crab as fish. There is a consensus amongst traditional scholars and hence, crabs will NOT be permissible according to the Hanafi madhab.
And Allah knows best
Wassalaamu `alaykum
Ml. Ismail Moosa,
Student Darul Iftaa
Checked and Approved by:
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In’aamiyyah