Question:

Our Dear Ameer, Assalamu alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh, may Allah give victory through you. It is mentioned in the book, The Funds in the Khilafah "Caliphate" State (Al-Amwal), on the subject of fines, page 104 (English edition), "Similarly, a fine is taken from the abstainer of paying Zakat half of his wealth as chastisement above the Zakat obliged upon him, due to the Prophet (saw) saying: «وَمَنْ مَنَعَهَا فأنا آخذها وشطر ماله» "....Whoever prevented it then I will take it plus half of his wealth" narrated by Abu Dawood and Ahmad).

It appears from what is stated that the adopted opinion is the permissibility of imposing fine on the abstainer of paying Zakat as a chastising punishment "Ta'ziria", despite many differences between the scholars on its legitimacy, but what I would like clarification on is:

1. The Hadeeth that is inferred in full, in terms of the chain of transmission (sanad) and the text (matn), since I have searched for it and I did not find except the Hadith of Bahz ibn Hakim, from his father, from his grandfather said:

فِي كُلِّ إِبِلٍ سَائِمَةٍ. فِي كُلِّ أَرْبَعِينَ ابْنَةُ لَبُونٍ. لَا تُفَرَّقُ إِبِلٌ عَنْ حِسَابِهَا. مَنْ أَعْطَاهَا مُؤْتَجِرًا فَلَهُ أَجْرُهَا، وَمَنْ مَنَعَهَا فَإِنَّا آخِذُوهَا مِنْهُ وَشَطْرَ إِبِلِهِ عَزْمَةً مِنْ عَزَمَاتِ رَبِّنَا لَا يَحِلُّ لِآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ مِنْهَا شَيْءٌ

"For pasturing camels, every forty, one female milk-bearing camel ‘Bint Labun' is to be given. No camel is to be separated from the rest of the camels. He who pays Zakat with the intention of getting reward will be rewarded. And whoever prevented it then we shall take it plus half (Shatra) of his camels, as a due from the dues of our Lord, the Exalted. There is no share in it (Zakat) for anyone from the family of Muhammad (saw)". Narrated by Ahmad.

And in Sunan Abu Dawood: Bahz ibn Hakim, from his father, from his grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:

فِي كُلِّ سَائِمَةِ إِبِلٍ فِي أَرْبَعِينَ بِنْتُ لَبُونٍ، وَلَا يُفَرَّقُ إِبِلٌ عَنْ حِسَابِهَا مَنْ أَعْطَاهَا مُؤْتَجِرًا - قَالَ ابْنُ الْعَلَاءِ مُؤْتَجِرًا بِهَا - فَلَهُ أَجْرُهَا، وَمَنْ مَنَعَهَا فَإِنَّا آخِذُوهَا وَشَطْرَ مَالِهِ، عَزْمَةً مِنْ عَزَمَاتِ رَبِّنَا عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، لَيْسَ لِآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ مِنْهَا شَيْءٌ

"The Messenger of Allah (saw) said: For every forty pasturing camels, one female milk-bearing camel ‘Bint Labun' is to be given. No camel is to be separated from the rest of the camels. He who pays Zakat with the intention of getting reward will be rewarded. And whoever prevented it then we shall take it plus half (Shatra) of his wealth, as a due from the dues of our Lord, the Exalted. There is no share in it (Zakat) for anyone from the family of Muhammad (saw)".

As for the Hadeeth with the wording, فأنا آخذها وشطر ماله "I will take it plus half of his wealth", I have not found it.

2. What is meant by half (Shatra) of his wealth? Is it half of his whole wealth? Or is it half of his wealth which he prevented its Zakat? Or is it half of the value of Zakat that he was obliged to pay on his wealth? Or is it based on some opinion that his wealth is split into two halves and the Zakat collector selects the best half and takes it for Sadaqah as penalty for preventing it? Baraka Allahu Bika and Feeka wa Jazzak Allahu Khairan.

Answer:

Wa Alaikum Assalam wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,

As for the Hadeeth you mentioned «فإنا آخذوها وشطر ماله» "then we will take it plus half of his wealth":

1. Abu Dawood reported from Bahz ibn Hakim, from his father, from his grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:

فِي كُلِّ سَائِمَةِ إِبِلٍ فِي أَرْبَعِينَ بِنْتُ لَبُونٍ، وَلَا يُفَرَّقُ إِبِلٌ عَنْ حِسَابِهَا مَنْ أَعْطَاهَا مُؤْتَجِرًا - قَالَ ابْنُ الْعَلَاءِ مُؤْتَجِرًا بِهَا - فَلَهُ أَجْرُهَا، وَمَنْ مَنَعَهَا فَإِنَّا آخِذُوهَا وَشَطْرَ مَالِهِ، عَزْمَةً مِنْ عَزَمَاتِ رَبِّنَا عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، لَيْسَ لِآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ مِنْهَا شَيْءٌ

"The Messenger of Allah (saw) said: For every forty pasturing camels, one female milk-bearing camel ‘Bint Labun' is to be given. No camel is to be separated from the rest of the camels. He who pays Zakat with the intention of getting reward will be rewarded. And whoever prevented it then we shall take it plus half of his wealth, as a due from the dues of our Lord, the Exalted. There is no share in it (Zakat) for anyone from the family of Muhammad (saw)".

2. It was also reported by Ahmad and An-Nisaa'i, and the wording is of Ahmad, from Bahz ibn Hakim, from his father, from his grandfather said: "I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw) say,

فِي كُلِّ إِبِلٍ سَائِمَةٍ. فِي كُلِّ أَرْبَعِينَ ابْنَةُ لَبُونٍ. لَا تُفَرَّقُ إِبِلٌ عَنْ حِسَابِهَا. مَنْ أَعْطَاهَا مُؤْتَجِرًا فَلَهُ أَجْرُهَا، وَمَنْ مَنَعَهَا فَإِنَّا آخِذُوهَا مِنْهُ وَشَطْرَ إِبِلِهِ عَزْمَةً مِنْ عَزَمَاتِ رَبِّنَا لَا يَحِلُّ لِآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ مِنْهَا شَيْءٌ

"For pasturing camels, every forty, one female milk-bearing camel ‘Bint Labun' is to be given. No camel is to be separated from the rest of the camels. He who pays Zakat with the intention of getting reward will be rewarded. And whoever prevented it then we shall take it plus half of his camels, as a due from the dues of our Lord, the Exalted. There is no share in it (Zakat) for anyone from the family of Muhammad (saw)".

• The Fuqahaa' (Islamic jurists) differed in the understanding of this Hadeeth:

Some of them say on the pretext of abrogation, so nothing else to be taken but the Zakat, and some say that the word "Shat'ra" meaning half in the narration is not so, rather it is "Shott'ira", in a passive tense, meaning his wealth is split into halves and the Zakat collector selects any of the two halves to take. While some of them say that the narrator had deluded, for it is فإنا آخذوها من شطر ماله "then we will take it from half of his wealth" or من شطر إبله "from half of his camels"...

• My most preponderant view in this matter is the following:

A. As for the issue of passive voice (al-maj'houl), the issue of the illusion (al-wahm), and the issue of abrogation (an-naskh); I rule out all of these:

Thus passive voice is ruled out because the word "Shat'ra" in all the considered Hadeeth narrations is mentioned without the passive voice...

The issue of illusion, as well is unlikely, because the narration is not,فإنا آخذوها منه شطر ماله "Fa Inna Akhithooha Minhu Shat'ra Malihi" to say that the letter "H" in the word "Minhu" is an illusion from the narrator. Even then, the illusion here cannot be as well, because it is ruled out that the narrator who knows Arabic to say "Minhu Shat'ra Malihi" How then if "Minhu" is followed by the letter "Wa", to say that he deluded and he said "Minhu Wa Shat'ra" instead of ""Min Shat'ra "? This is unlikely....

This is with regards to passive voice and illusion. As for the issue of abrogation, it is also unlikely because the date is unknown, their evidence to support abrogation is not clear, and because the general evidences of Zakat do not abrogate the specific evidence of Zakat concerning the punishment of the abstainer from giving Zakat...

B. The most preponderant to me is that the first Hadeeth:فَإِنَّا آخِذُوهَا وَشَطْرَ مَالِهِ "then we shall take it plus half of his wealth" stating that the Zakat is taken by force from the Zakat abstainer, and is fined half of his wealth. It is also possible to understand from it, half of all his wealth, i.e. the wealth that is due for Zakat and other funds that have not yet reached the amount of Zakat of Gold, silver, cattle, camels, sheep, wheat, barley, dates, raisins, and trade goods.

C. In the other Hadeeth:فَإِنَّا آخِذُوهَا مِنْهُ وَشَطْرَ إِبِلِهِ "then we shall take it plus half of his camels" came after mentioning Zakat of camels «فِي كُلِّ إِبِلٍ سَائِمَةٍ...» "In every pasturing camels...". It means that the word "Shat'ra" is added to the camel owned by him, so it is taken from him Zakat of the camel and half the camel. More clearly, if he has forty pasturing camels, then one female milk-bearing camel ‘Bint Labun' is taken from him as Zakat, then another fine is taken from him which is half of the forty camels.

D. Hence, the second Hadeeth is specifying the earlier Hadeeth. That is, he is not fined half of all his wealth, but half the wealth that is due for Zakat.

E. As for the meaning of the word "Shat'ra" is it half or part; it is mentioned in the dictionary "Al-Muheet" (Shat'ra: half a thing and part of it). Thus this is left to the adoption of the Khalifah regarding the abstainer of giving the Zakat: either to take from him the Zakat and half of his wealth that is due for Zakat, or to take the Zakat and part of his wealth that is due for Zakat, as to fine him for preventing Zakat... Although I am inclined to the half, because it is fine and the fine carries the meaning of punishment and severity... and Allah knows best and He is All-Wise.

For your information we have mentioned this topic in the evidences for imposing fines, which means taking half of the wealth is fine, as stated in the book of "Al-Amwal" (The Funds in the Islamic State), and the book of "Nidham ul-Uqoobat" (The Penal Code).

Your brother,

Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah

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