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Penalties in Light of Sunnah

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Fatwaa.com

Respected mufti,

I would like to ask your opinion on this matter:is it possible for a Muslim NOT to apply the hudd punishments on someone quoting episodes of the life of Muhammad where he said:”Avoid punishments in every way”for example?Or in episodes of his life where he was actually criticizing his companions for being too harsh(I don’t remember precisely,but there was an episode where someone was killed by a sahaba,and Muhammad criticised the sahaba because the sinner might have one day repented).The reasoning behind this attitude of not applying the punishments would be a bit like the methodology of the salafis:they don’t consider the four madhabs’ rulings binding,but only the Koran and the Sunna.So,is it possible for an Islamic judge to say:”Vey well,I will not stone you for adultery even if half the city actually saw you performing the act,because Muhammad said to avoid punishments,and I don’t care about what the 4 Imams said!”?

Thanks for the reply.

Answer

Wa’alaykum as Salām wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuhu,

The response to your question lies in the second half of the narration you quoted. The full narration is as follows:


عن على رضى الله عنه قال قال رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- :« ادرءوا الحدود ولا ينبغى للإمام أن يعطل الحدود (أخرجه البيهقي في السنن الكبرى – (8 / 238

“Avert punishments (if there is doubt) and it is not permissible for an Imām to be neglectful in fulfilling the hudūd (punishments set by Allah Ta’ala).”
(As-Sunan al-Kubrā 8/238)

It is also narrated with the words,

إدرأوا الحدود بالشبهات ، وأقيلوا للكرام عثراتهم إلا في حد من حدود الله تعالى

“Avert punishments if there is a doubt and forgive the errors of honoured people except if it is regarding the punishment of the punishments of Allah” (Sharh Mulla ‘Ali ‘alā Musnad Abi Hanifah 1/186)

This proofs that the punishments of Allah cannot be totally abandoned. They were instituted to be implemented. Numerous Ahādith of Sahīh al-Bukkhāri and Sahīh Muslim show how Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم himself implemented the hadd.

Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم also said,


عن أبي هريرة قال : قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم : ( إقامة حد بأرض خير لأهلها من مطر أربعين صباحا )أخرجه ابن حبان في صحيحه- (10 / 243) و الطبراني في المعجم الصغير – (2 / 166( و ابن ماجه في

سننه – (2 / 848) وقال شعيب الأرنؤوط : رجاله ثقات

“Establishing the hudūd is better than having rain for forty days.”(Sahīh Ibn Hibbān 10/243, Al-Mu’jam al-kabīr 2/166, Sunan bn Mājah 2/848. Shaykh Shuaib al-Arnāūt said that the narrators are reliable.)

These all show how essential it is to implement the hudūd of Allah.
What then is the meaning of the narration, “Avert punishments if there is a doubt?”
This Hadīth actually means that if there is doubt that a person perpetrated a crime, like only two people saw him committing adultery, or there is no evidence to show that he stole, then do not punish him. However, if there is evidence that he is guilty, then the law of Allah Tā’āla has to be implemented.

In fact, Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم himself tried his level best to avert punishments by doubts. The incident of Māiz which is narrated in Sahīh al-Bukhāri and Sahīh Muslim is famous. Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم continued questioning him trying to see if there is any doubt so that he could avert the punishment. However, when it became clearly manifest that he did perpetrate the vile crime, Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم pelted him.

The second incident which you alluded to is as follows:


عن هارون بن رئاب قال : بعث رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بعثا ، ففتح لهم ، فبعثوا بشيرهم إلى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ، فبينا هو خبره بفتح الله لهم ، وبعدد من قتل الله منهم ، قال : فتفردت برجل منهم ، فلما غشيته لأقتله ، قال : إني مسلم ، قال : فقتلته وقد قال : إني مسلم ؟! قال : يا رسول الله ، إنما قال ذلك متعوذا ، قال : فهلا شققت عن قلبه ؟! قال : وكيف أعرف ذلك يا رسول الله ؟ قال : فلا لسانه صدقت ، ولا قلبه عرفت ، إنك لقاتله اخرج عني فلا تصاحبني قال : ثم إن الرجل توفي فلفظته الأرض مرتين ، فألقي في بعض تلك الأودية. ) إتحاف الخيرة المهرة – (1 / 81
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Hārūn bin Riāb says, “Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم sent out an expedition who became victorious. They sent a bearer of glad tidings to Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم. As he was narratin how they attained victory and how many people they killed he said, ‘I attacked one person. When I covered him and was about to kill him he said, ‘I am a Muslim.’ However, I still killed him in spite of him saying that he is a Muslim. Oh Nabi of Allah, He said that just to save himself.’ Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم replied, ‘Did you cut open his heart to (see if he is saying that just to save himself)?’ The person asked, ‘How would I know if I cut open his heart?’ Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم replied, ‘So you did not believe in what he said with his tongue nor were you able to see in his heart. You have killed him! Move from here and do not stay in my company’. This person than died but the earth threw him out twice.”(Ithāf al-Khiyarah al-mahara 1/81. Busiri said that this is a narration the narrators of which are authentic)
This narration clearly shows that there was doubt whether the person was liable to be killed because he said that he is a Muslim. Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم did not object to the other warriors for killing the disbelievers.

As for your last point, if a Salafi judge really uses the afore-mentioned narration to avert punishment, it will only indicate to his foolishness. He will be using one remote narration out of context to avert punishments established from Qurān, Tawātur Ahādith, the action of Nabi صلي الله عليه وسلم and Khulafā Rāshidīn, and Ijmā. Errors of this sought are not farfetched from those belittle the works of our pious and learned predecessors.

And Allaah Ta’aala knows best
Wassalaam,
Ismail Moosa (Mufti)
Iftaa Department,
Euro-Sunni & Islamic Research and Welfare Academy

This answer was collected from Fatwaa.com which is an excellent Q&A site managed by Mufti Ismail Moosa from South Africa. .

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