Khilafat & Selection of Khalifa note prepared by mahbub ratul JnU

Definition of Khilafa and Khalifa

Khalifa is an Arabic word literally meaning "one who replaces someone else who left or died". Khilafa is a related Arabic word which, in the context of Islam, is used to denote the government of the Muslim state, of which the Khalifa is the head. A workable analogy of Khalifat and Khilafa is president and presidency or king and monarchy. The Khilafa is a fard kifaya on the ummah.

The duties and responsibilities of the Khalifa

The Khalifa of the Muslim ummah must strive to:

1. Safeguard Islam in its original form, and to protect against the introduction of new things (bid'a) into Islam.
2. Establish justice among the people.
3. Ensure the protection of the ummah.
4. Protect the physical boundaries of the state through the use of arms and other methods.
5. Defend the rights of Muslims abroad, and to see to it that Islam can spread freely in non-Muslim lands.
6. Organize jihad against any non-Muslim government which prevents Muslim da'wah from entering its land.
7. Collect and distribute zakat according to the Qur'an and Sunnah .
8. Pay the salaries of Bayt-ul-Mal employees those people whose job is the collection of zakat and other state-levied taxes. Their salaries should be reasonable and be paid on time.
9. Hire honest people as helpers, aides, governors, etc. The Khalifa must appoint to public office those who are competent and who can give good advice. This especially applies to Bayt-ul-Mal officials.
10. Be heavily involved personally in the acts of governing. The Khalifa must be actively checking and overseeing the duties of the government, and constantly be guarding against internal corruption.

The prerequisites to becoming the Khalifa

Muslim scholars have determined certain criteria which any possible candidate for the Khalifa must meet to be considered legitimate.

1. The Khalifa must be Muslim.
2. He must be a man. This condition is based on the hadith where the Prophet states that ‘a nation would not profit under a woman as its leader’.
3. He must be knowledgeable in Islam, and be able to make independent decisions if necessary.
4. He must be just, have good morals, and be trustworthy.
5. He must be physically able, spiritual, brave, and helpful to protect the ummah against its enemies.
6. He must be politically, militarily, and administratively experienced.
7. He must be from the tribe of Quraish because they used to be the leading tribe, the majority. The Prophet has said, "The Khalifas are Quraishi." However, many Muslim scholars have commented on this prerequisite. Al-Mawardi has written that the Khalifa should be Quraishi based on the saying of Abu Bakr that the Khalifas are Quraishi and their ministers are non-Quraishi. The majority of scholars are of this opinion. Other scholars have arrived at a different conclusion. Abu Bakr Al-Baqlani has said that the leader of the Muslims simply should be from the majority. Abu Hanifa wrote that the leader must come from the majority to make it easy to follow him.

How the Khalifa may be chosen

There are three ways in which the Muslim ummah may choose a new Khalifa. However, in all three cases, the people are obligated to give the new Khalifa their bay'a once the process of choosing him is over. People can send representatives to give their bay'a if the population is large. The three ways of choosing the Khalifa are by selection, by nomination, and by force.

1. By selection. The Khalifa is selected by a group of the best, most Islamically knowledgeable people in the society. This group is called the Majlis-Ash-Shura. The members of the Majlis-ash-Shura are chosen from experts who are learned in Islam, and they in turn choose the Khalifa. If the society as a whole rejects their choice, the Majlis-ash-Shura must find out why, perhaps negotiate with the people, and in general try to resolve the problem - however, this situation has never occurred. The Majlis-ash-Shura must have at least three people by the definition of a jama'a . The Muslim scholar Al-Mawardi has noted that in the emergency case of no Khalifa and no Majlis-ash-Shura, the people should create two parties: one being the Majlis-ash-Shura, and the other being a list of candidates for the Khalifa. The Majlis-ash-Shura then selects a Khalifa from the list of candidates.
2. By nomination. The current Khalifa may nominate his successor, the next Khalifa (as Abu Bakr did with Umar). The people have to accept him just as in the first case. If the old Khalifa appoints someone unworthy out of ulterior motives, the people must reject that appointee.
3. By force. If the current Khalifa forces someone on the people to be the next Khalifa, but that person is righteous, the people must accept him as long as he remains righteous. Similarly, if there is no Khalifa , it is permitted for someone to forcibly seize power and declare himself the Khalifa if he guarantees to abide by his responsibilities under Islam.

Khalifa select by the Majlis-ash-Shura

There is no fixed size for this group, however, it is generally agreed that it should not be too large. Muslim scholars have established some basic prerequisites which the members of the Majlis-ash-Shura should have to become part of that group. All agree that the members must be adults and of sound mind. These members are chosen by the various communities in the ummah. Other prerequisites, while generally agreed upon, differ slightly from scholar to scholar.

·         Al-Mawardi has written that each member should satisfy three conditions: he must be just, he must have enough knowledge of Islam to differentiate between a potentially good Khalifa and a bad one, and he must have sufficient wisdom and judgment to select the best leader.

·         Al-Juwayni has four conditions for the Majlis-ash-Shura: each member must be a man, knowledgeable, above average relatively, and Muslim.

There are five conditions which must be met for the Majlis-ash-Shura to legitimately select a new Khalifa.

1. There must currently be no existing Khalifa.
2. A qualified and willing individual must accept his nomination by the Majlis-ash-Shura.
3. The nominee must have been selected freely by the Majlis-ash-Shura - and the members of the Majlis-ash-Shura must give him their bay'a.
4. Some scholars say that at least a majority of the Majlis-ash-Shura must agree on the new Khalifa.
5. Al-Ashari believes the Khalifa could be given to an eligible person even by a single vote if he comes from the Majlis-ash-Shura and has a good Islamic character.

Using force to choose the Khalifa

One way the Khalifa may be chosen is through the use of force. Many Muslim scholars say that if a person has already seized power, then to avoid Muslim bloodshed that person should be accepted if he upholds his duties as the Khalifa of the Muslim ummah.

·         Ibn Hanbal wrote that if a Khalifa has seized power and he  meet his responsibilities under Islam,

            it is haram to fight him.

• However, Ash-Shafi'i believed that a person who seizes power and then is accepted by the people is a legitimate Khalifa.

·         An-Nawawi believed that if someone forces himself on the ummah, but is qualified, then he should be accepted by the people to avoid Muslim bloodshed and to preserve Muslim unity. An-Nawawi also claimed that if the new Khalifa subsequently does not follow the sunnah of the Prophet precisely, it would be still be questionable to fight against him because of the paramount importance of avoiding Muslim bloodshed and disunity.

·         Ibn Khaldun, Al-Asqalani and Al-Juwayni all believed that forceful seizure of power by someone is legitimate as long as he follows Islam as the new Khalifa.

·         Ibn Taymiya wrote that after someone has seized power, he is legitimate so long as he follows the Qur'an and Sunnah.

Disobeying and removing the Khalifa

Many Muslim scholars have commented on when it is permissible to disobey or remove the Khalifa, which is normally forbidden when the Khalifa is meeting all his responsibilities under Islam.

·         Al-Mawardi believed that if the Khalifa has followed the Qur'an and Sunnah, the people must follow and support him. On the other hand, if he becomes either unjust or handicapped to the point of ineffectiveness (such as blindness or an amputation), then he must be removed.

·         Al-Ghazali believed that an oppressive Khalifa must be told to desist from his crimes. If he does not, then he must be removed.

·         Muslim reported that Ibn Umar said the Prophet ordered every Muslim to obey their leader unless commanded to do something bad, in which case they must neither obey nor listen. Muslim also reported that Ibn Malik said the best leader is the one where mutual love exists between him and the people, and the worst leader generates mutual hate. However, even in the latter case, fighting the Khalifa is prohibited unless he enters kufr by stopping prayers or zakat for example.

·         Abu Daud reports from Ibn Ujrah that the Prophet entered a masjid, and said there will come leaders after him who disobey the Qur'an and Allah. Those who help them are not of the Muslims, but if someone opposes them, he or she is of the Prophet's people.

The Khalifa must be seriously and unrepentantly off the straight path if he is to be accused of kufr. Actions like neglecting prayers, ignoring the fast, and claiming that the Qur'an and Sunnah are outdated are the types of crimes that indicate kufr on the part of the Khalifa. In such circumstances, he must be warned quietly first before taking any physical action against him. However, in cases where the Khalifa is not a kafir, but is simply very belligerent (e.g., seizing the land of others unjustly), the people are obligated to yield their rights (including possessions) to avoid bloodshed. Instead, they should pray to Allah to restore their rights.
Mahbub Ratul
Jagannath University (JnU)
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