The imamate of one who sleeps through fajr and takes services from young boys in private

Question

Zayd is the imam of a mosque, and along with that the task of teaching children is also his responsibility. The said imam quite often does not lead the fajr prayer even when the followers call him again and again, so, in exasperation, another man has to lead it while the respected imam stays asleep.

Answer

If sleep overpowers him so that he is unable to wake up, then there is no need to remove him; however, it is necessary to make arrangements so that he wakes up on time: that he goes to sleep early at night after ‘isha’, that an alarm clock is arranged, that he sleeps in such a place and in such a way that it is easy to wake him, [and that] the mu’adhdhin or someone else wakes…

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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