Roofing the northern and southern parts of the mosque courtyard and worshippers standing there

Question

A mosque has a rather long and wide courtyard; in summer and in the rainy season it becomes difficult for the worshippers to pray in the courtyard. Now, in accordance with the plan mentioned, they want to give this courtyard the form of a veranda: a small veranda would be built on the northern and eastern sides, and the middle of the courtyard would be left unroofed, so that in summer and in the rainy season people would pray on both verandas.

Answer

Building such a veranda by mutual consultation, according to need, is permissible: the rows of the veranda will remain connected to the rows of the inner mosque — [this being] at times of intense heat and rain. And if the courtyard remains empty while the worshippers stand in the inner mosque and on the veranda, the prayer will still be valid.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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