The status of a radio announcement

Question

If news of the moon comes over Pakistani radio or Indian radio, is it reliable or not? Since Radio Pakistan is the radio of Muslims, what then is the reason that its news should not be accepted as reliable? (2) When already in the morning the news from Bombay that the moon had appeared reached the imam of the Jama Masjid of Delhi, why did he not accept what Bombay said at that time, and why later, at one o'clock, did he have the fast broken? It is a strange puzzle.

Answer

If someone testifies on the radio: “I have seen the moon of Eid,” this testimony is not reliable with respect to the listeners — neither from the Bombay radio, nor from the Lahore radio, nor from any other Islamic or non-Islamic country. For testimony to be accepted, it is a condition that the witness be present at the session where testimony is given (majlis al-shahada)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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