May a tenant let the shop to another tenant?

Question

Question: There is a man here who has been renting a shop belonging to the mosque for several years. He does not use it himself, but always keeps another tenant in it. He pays the mosque eight rupees as the rent of the shop, and himself collects fifteen rupees from the tenant, thus earning seven rupees profit every month?

Answer

Taking this profit is not correct, even though it is not interest either. If he has spent something on the shop — for example, fitted it with a cupboard, door-leaves and the like — and thereby raised its value, then taking profit to that extent is permitted. The committee has the right to terminate the dealing with the original tenant and deal with the sub-tenant.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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