QnA: The Fiqh of the Masjid (5/10)

The Imaam should be a person who realises his responsibility. A Hadith in Tirmidhi Shareef states: The Imaam is responsible. An Imaam stands in the place where Mustafa Nabi Muhammad SAW stood and when Nabi Muhammad SAW was in Madinah Munawwarah he always made Imaamat. Only when he was in fatal sickness do we find that on 17 occasions that Salaah was performed by Sayyidinah Siddeeq RA and on one of this Nabi Muhammad SAW arrived late. So it isn’t a minor thing to be the Imaam. It is a big responsibility.

Criterion for Imaam: preferably the Imaam must be a Hafiz or Qari therefore Nabi Muhammad SAW said, “The people who read well and know the laws, will be ideal.” He must be a man of integrity and honesty. You can’t have people as Imaam whose income is Haraam or dubious eg, the man who sells Televisions or whose wife travels on journeys without hijab etc. Such people cannot make Imaamat because according to the Fuqaha he is classified a Faasiq. Likewise the clothes of the Imaam must be proper. He cannot don clothes like that of a non Muslim. This does not behove the noble status and the sublime rank of an Imaam. Similarly the Imaam cannot be one who is looking for political expediency and scoring points, someone who wants to please the Muslims and Kaafirs. The Imaam should be someone who is punctual for Salaah. Sometimes you have a few Imaams who rotate and the Imaam only comes when it is his chance to be Imaam. There is a strict criteria for a person to be an Imaam. By putting a youngster, who is not versed in the masaa’il of Qiraat and are unqualified to be Imaam makes the Imaam and trustees guilty of a major sin.