Must the Imam Adhere to His Duties

Question

For the religious needs of the town and for the imamate of the Congregational Mosque a certain respected scholar was appointed, more than half of whose salary is paid from the income of the awqaf (endowments); in addition, fifty rupees a month [are paid to him] from the income of the waqf of the Congregational Mosque, and a house of corresponding rental value, which is endowed as waqf for the Congregational Mosque, has been given to the said respected scholar to live in.

Answer

Whatever agreement was made with the respected scholar regarding the imamate and the translation [of the Qur’an] must be adhered to. If on occasion some pressing need happens to arise and because of it he cannot attend or cannot give the translation, that may be accommodated, and he should not be taken to task severely for it.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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