Question:
Can Muslim bodies affected by Covid-19 be cremated? Recently, the Srilankan Supreme Court has ordered to cremate the bodies.
Answer:
Wa ‘alaykum assalam wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh.
I pray you are well.
No. The default ruling of burying the deceased according to the practice of the Muslims still stands. Proper precautions are to be taken in order to prevent further spread of the virus. There have been cases of people contracting it from the deceased.
I looked into the matter and could not find any authoritative sources that suggested it would be permissible to bury the bodies. With proper protective equipment the risk of contacting the virus is neutralised. In the case of a large number of bodies, multiple people can be buried in one grave if need be. So there is no need to resort to such a policy. [Shurunbulali, Imdad al-Fattah]
The European Fatwa Council also issued a statement saying that Muslims should bury and not burn their deceased. I hope that helps.
I pray that helps.
[Shaykh] Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani