Imamate of One Who Does Not Consider the Qur’an Lesson Obligatory

Question

When an imam of a mosque was asked to hold a Qur’an lesson, he said in front of a group of people, in a mocking tone: “Is holding a Qur’an lesson some sunna or fard?” What is the ruling of the Shari‘a regarding such a person? Is it permissible to pray behind him? And is repentance (tawba) binding on the imam or not?

Answer

Merely because of saying this, praying behind this imam is not prohibited; rather, it is permissible. The treatise “Tafsir Dars-e-Qur’an” (“A Qur’an Lesson in Tafsir”) contains beneficial subjects, but reading it specifically is neither fard nor sunna.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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