A rooster does not become halal by drawing a knife over it after its death

Question

Question: In the locality of Shahr Wasa, a man (a Muslim) keeps chickens. A few days ago a dog seized one of this man’s roosters. After a great struggle the man freed the rooster, but in a dead state; onlookers saw that the rooster had already died, yet the said man drew a knife over the dead rooster and kept saying that the rooster had been fluttering. But the people declared it dead, and he then conceded; at the same time he was also told not to eat the rooster. This man had the rooster cooked and ate it.

Answer

A rooster that has already died, from which the soul has departed, will not become halal by drawing a knife over it; rather it will remain carrion, and eating it is absolutely haram. Whoever ate it has acted against the Noble Qur’an, by which he has become a grave sinner; it is incumbent on him to feel remorse for his error and to make repentance (tawba)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.