Question: 1) My father transferred half of his wealth (property,
agricultural land) to his sons in his life and for the rest of his wealth it
was said that it will be divided according to sharia. But after four years of
his death, the remaining property is not divided yet as my brothers
financial condition is not good. This
situation of not getting my share grieves me.
But for the sake of everyone's good life and hereafter, I made an
intention that I forgive everyone who is involved but if they decide to give me
my share, which has very rare chance, I will take it. What could be a good
intention in this situation? 2) The property that my father transferred in his life to his
sons, did I have any share in it in anyway? Answer: بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيْم In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 1) The
ruling for the wealth your father gave to your brothers during his lifetime is as
follows: a) If your father gave the
wealth to your brothers before his maradul maut (sickness that he never recovered from until death)
and your brothers took possession of the wealth during his lifetime, then this
will be counted as a valid gift and, as a result, they became the sole owners
of this wealth. b) If your father gave the
wealth to your brothers before his maradul maut but your brothers did NOT take possession of the
wealth during his lifetime, then this will NOT be counted as a valid gift and,
as a result, they did NOT become owners of this wealth. c) If your father gave the
wealth to your brothers during his maradul maut, then this will not be counted as gift; instead,
it will be counted as wasiyya (bequest).
Making a wasiyya for an heir is not permissible. In
scenarios (b) and (c), your brothers did not become owners of the wealth. Hence,
that wealth along with the rest of your father’s wealth will have to be
distributed among all the heirs, including yourself, in accordance with the
rules of Shariah. (Ahsanul Fatawa: 9/302) Your
brothers are committing a grave sin by usurping your share of inheritance. This
is regardless of their financial position. How can there be blessings in
anyone’s wealth if they have usurped the wealth of others. It
comes in a hadith that whoever takes any land without having the right to do
so, on the day of judgement he will be sunk inside the earth all the way to the
seven earths. (Bukhari) In
another hadith, it says that whoever takes any land unlawfully will be forced
to carry its soil to the plain of resurrection. (Musnad
Ahmad) In another hadith, it says that whoever
unlawfully takes one handspan of land, Allah SWT will make him dig it until he
reaches the end of the seventh earth; then he will be made to wear it around
his neck until the day of judgment, until the reckoning of people is finished. (Musnad Ahmad) (See: Mishkaat with
Mirqaat: 6/156) Another
hadith says: “Whoever has wronged his brother in respect to his honor or
anything else should seek from him to make it halal today, before the time
comes when there is no Dinar or Dirham. Otherwise (if he doesn’t do so), if he
has good deeds (on the day of judgment), it will be taken from him (and given
to the wronged person) to the extent of his wrongdoing. If he does not have any
good deeds, then the bad deeds of the other (the wronged person) will be
transferred to him.” (Bukhari; See: Mishkaat with Mirqaat: 8/849) Also,
it comes in a hadith: “Do not wrong others. The wealth of another person is not
halal without his wholehearted approval.” (Baihaqi,
Ad-Daarqutni; See: Mishkaat
with Mirqaat: 6:149) Our
suggestion is that you should discuss this with some respectable persons who
should then talk to your brothers about it. It is possible that your brothers
are not aware of the gravity of their action in the eyes of Allah SWT and its
consequences in the akhirah. Once they are informed and they realise the gravity of their action and they contact you regarding the matter
then you may make any agreement that you wish. You should not feel that you are
under any duress to give them your wealth. If they take your wealth without
your wholehearted approval, then that wealth will not be halal for them, as the
hadith states. 2) If during one’s lifetime, someone gives any
or all his wealth to someone and the recipient takes possession of it during
the lifetime of the benefactor, then that wealth will be considered a gift and,
as a result, the recipient will become the sole owner of it. If a parent gifts
his wealth to only some of his children or he gifts it to all his children but
gives more to some than others, then the ruling is as follows: - If his intention is to harm
the other children then this is makrooh tahreemi (prohibited and sinful). - If his intention is not to
harm the other children but he does not have any valid basis of giving
preference to some children over others then this is makrooh
tanzeehi (not recommended). - It is mustahab
(preferable) to give to sons and daughters equally. - If he gave more to some
children due to their religiousness, being occupied with doing deeni works or being more needy, then this is mustahab
(preferable). - One should not give to
irreligious children more than their necessity. It is preferable to deprive
such children and to, instead, give one’s surplus wealth for deeni works. (Ahsanul
Fatawa: 7/256) And
Allah Ta'ala knows best. Mufti
Faizal Riza Darul Ifta
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