Returning money taken in advance when a rental arrangement ends

Question

Question: I am the mutawalli (trustee) of a mosque. A room of the mosque was to be let. Two customers came: one of them was offering cash, and the other was my neighbour. He did not have the full amount, but he put pressure on me, and in the end the deal was settled with him that the donation (‘atiyya) for the room would be 5½ thousand rupees and the rent forty rupees a month.

Answer

(1) Since possession of the room was not given, collecting rent for that period from him is not correct according to the Shari‘a — especially since he had apologised and told you to let the room to someone else. (2)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.