❖ What is the Ruling if a Qadi Gives a Verdict Against the Texts of Shariah? ❖
Source: Fatāwā Ameenpuri by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Ameenpuri
✿ Question:
What is the ruling if a Qadi (judge) issues a verdict against the explicit text of Shariah?
✿ Answer:
Every judicial verdict must be based on the Qur’an, Sunnah, and the consensus (ijmāʿ) of the Ummah. If a Qadi gives a ruling against the explicit text of the Qur’an or Sunnah, then such a verdict is invalid and rejected. Every dispute must be referred back to the Qur’an and Hadith.
◈ Statement of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله) (728H):
إن الحاكم متى خالف نصا أو إجماعا نقض حكمه باتفاق الأئمة .
Translation:
If a ruler (judge) issues a ruling contrary to a text (of Qur’an and Sunnah) or the consensus, his ruling is annulled, by the agreement of the Imams.
(Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 27/202)
◈ Statement of ʿAllāmah Ibn Abī al-ʿIzz al-Ḥanafī (رحمه الله) (792H):
من المحال أن لا يحصل الشفاء والهدى والعلم واليقين من كتاب الله وكلام رسوله، ويحصل من كلام هؤلاء المتحيرين، بل الواجب أن يجعل ما قاله الله ورسوله هو الأصل، ويتدبر معناه ويعقله، ويعرف برهانه ودليله؛ إما العقلي وإما الخبري السمعي، ويعرف دلالته على هذا وهذا، ويجعل أقوال الناس التى توافقه وتخالفه متشابهة مجملة، فيقال لأصحابها : هذه الألفاظ تحتمل كذا وكذا، فإن أرادوا بها ما يوافق خبر الرسول قبل ، وإن أرادوا بها ما يخالفه رد .
Translation:
It is impossible that cure, guidance, knowledge, and certainty are not found in the Book of Allah and the speech of His Messenger ﷺ, yet are found in the words of the confused and bewildered. Rather, it is obligatory that what Allah and His Messenger said be taken as the foundation. Its meaning should be reflected upon, understood, and its evidences—whether rational or transmitted—should be recognized. Its indications in all respects must be considered. Human statements sometimes conform to revelation, sometimes oppose it, and sometimes are ambiguous. These must be weighed accordingly. Their proponents should be told: your statement has such-and-such possibilities. If they mean what agrees with the Messenger’s report, it is accepted; if they mean what opposes it, it is rejected.
(Sharḥ al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah, p. 167)
Conclusion:If a Qadi rules against the Qur’an, Sunnah, or Ijmāʿ, then his verdict is null and void. The only binding authority in matters of judgment is the Qur’an and Hadith, and all human opinions are acceptable only if they align with revelation.
