Accusing Someone and Then Denying It

Question

A qadi, who is also a government teacher, in the presence of several people brought a false and baseless accusation against the responsible men of the town — that they were procuring one another’s transfers — and thereby sowed discord in the community. But at the time of clarification, in the presence of the very people to whom he had said it, he denied it on oath. On the other side, those four or five Muslims also declare on oath that the qadi said this at different times and in different gatherings.

Answer

To bring an accusation without verification, on the basis of a false report or a false supposition, becomes a cause of strife; therefore clarification and verification are obligatory. One should clear the matter with the person about whom the false thing was said: for such-and-such reason it came to this; it has now become clear that the thing was untrue, and so I apologize.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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