The Imamate of One Accused of Zina

Question

Zayd is a hafiz of the Qur’an and the imam of the neighbourhood mosque. He also used to teach the daughter of a man from that neighbourhood. The girl is about 11 years old and is a minor. One day it happened that Zaytun came out of the study room crying, with blood flowing from her vagina. The household came running and asked the imam what had happened. He said that he had jabbed [her] with the bamboo stick used for beating, and in anger it had accidentally struck the vagina and blood began to flow.

Answer

In the case described, it is not correct to declare the imam in question a fornicator (zani) and to apply to him the rulings concerning a fornicator: the proof that the Shari‘a requires for [establishing] zina does not exist. However, he also had no right to beat the child with a bamboo stick — its prohibition is stated in Radd al-Muhtar.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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