Q: A certain Muslim butchery, sells Qurbaani Sheep, and also offers a service where they cut the sheep for you, skin it, store it, and when you come to fetch it, they slice it and give it to you. A certain person paid them R 1800 for one sheep; they accordingly slaughtered it on Eid Day and kept the carcass for this person. When this person went to the butchery to have his meat sliced and taken away, the butchery apologized that they cannot find the carcass, it has been misplaced, or perhaps they had given it to someone else by mistake. Does the butchery have to now refund the R1800 to this person?
A: Your qurbaani is valid. If you want to make them responsible, you have the right to do so if it was on account of pure negligence that they have lost your carcass. However, the cash that you receive must be given out in sadaqah to some poor person.
ولو غصب أضحية مذبوحة ضمن قيمتها لأنه مال مملوك لغيره أخذ بغير إذنه وإذا أخذ المضحي قيمتها يتصدق بها لأنه بالتضمين ملكها منه فصار كأنه باعها منه وإذا باعها منه لزمه التصدق بقيمتها فكذا هذا ولا يجوز له أن يهبها لغيره (الفتاوى الهندية 5/307)
( فإن بيع اللحم أو الجلد به ) أي بمستهلك ( أو بدراهم تصدق بثمنه ) (الدر المختار 6/328)
Answered by:
Mufti Ebrahim Salejee (Isipingo Beach)