Answered by Shaykh Ilyas Patel
Selamun alaikum we rahmetullah,
my question follows: say a latecomer comes to join a group of two individuals in prayer (the imam and the follower to his right)- is it ok to join the follower in the same line, or must one step to the rear and tap the follower as to join him in the line now behind the imam?
In the Name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful
I pray this finds you in the best of health and spirits.
To summarise the issue:
* if a third person joins in, the follower should move back himself;
* if he does not move back himself, then the third person should pull him gently towards the back gently.
The author of Umdat-al-Fiqh mentions (like the major later scholars of the Hanafi school) that due to lack of knowledge and the risk of an inappropriate response from the follower, if the Imam himself moves forward then it would suffice too.
(Allama Zuwwar Husain Shah, Umdat-al-Fiqh pg 206)
And Allah Knows Best