❖ Sharʿī Principle of a Qāḍī’s Judgment: Based on Confession and Testimony ❖
By: Imran Ayub Lahori
Sharʿī Rule
A Qāḍī (Islamic judge) issues rulings based either on:
① The confession (iqrār) of the defendant (mudaʿā ʿalayh), or
② The testimony (shahādah) of witnesses: either two men, or one man and two women.
✿ Evidence from the Sunnah
Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه and Sayyidunā Zayd ibn Khālid al-Juhanī رضي الله عنه narrated:
وافد يا أنيس إلى امرأة هذا فإن اعترفت فارجمها
“O Anīs! Go in the morning to this man’s wife, and if she confesses (to adultery), then stone her.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2695, 2696; Abū Dāwūd: 4445; Tirmidhī: 1433; Nasāʾī 8/240; Ibn Mājah: 2549; Musnad Aḥmad 4/115; Musnad al-Ḥumaydī: 811)
This shows that when even a severe punishment like rajm (stoning to death) can be established by confession, then decisions involving lesser rulings are all the more valid on the basis of confession.✿ Evidence from the Qur’an
Allah تعالى says:
﴿وَاسْتَشْهِدُوا شَهِيدَيْنِ مِن رِّجَالِكُمْ ۖ فَإِن لَّمْ يَكُونَا رَجُلَيْنِ فَرَجُلٌ وَامْرَأَتَانِ مِمَّن تَرْضَوْنَ مِنَ الشُّهَدَاءِ﴾
(al-Baqarah: 282)
“And bring to witness two men from among your men; and if two men are not available, then one man and two women from those whom you approve as witnesses.”
Conclusion:A Qāḍī’s ruling is firmly based on either the confession of the defendant or the testimony of witnesses (two men, or one man and two women), as established by Qur’an and Sunnah.
