Adeel replied on Saturday, June 12, 2010 03:22 AM
Well said by Abdul. Although nobody is expected to change his stance but here is one refernce from previous Post of this website for those who want to do more research:
The issue is extremely controversial. Here is one reference which says a lot about it:
http://www.globalwebpost.com/farooqm/writings/islamic/r-i-consensus.html
The excerpt:
NOTE for fellow Muslims: Because this topic of riba involves what is haram (prohibited) and halal (permissible) in Islam, every Muslim MUST do his/her own due diligence and conscientiously reach own position/decision in regard to personal practice. In doing so regarding this matter or any other aspect of life, Muslims should seek guidance from the Qur'an and the Prophetic legacy.
"There is nothing prohibited except that which God prohibits ...
To declare something permitted prohibited is like declaring something prohibited permitted." Ibn Qayyim*
Shaykh Mahmud Shaltut
Shaykh Mahmud Shaltut () was an eminent Egyptian Islamic scholar. He was also the shaykh or grand imam of Al-Azhar University in Egypt from 1958 to 1963. Dr. Fathi Osman, in his book, Concepts of the Qur'an: A Topical Reading (2nd edition, Los Angeles, MVI Publications, 1999), p. 919, mentions the following.
"Muhammad Abduh, the distinguished Egyptian mufti and commentator on the Quran [d. 1905], considered the interest paid by the post offices for the savings there as lawful, an opinion later supported by Mahmud Shaltut, the former Sheikh of al-Azhar [d. 1962] Moreover, he allowed for the interest on state bonds, if the economic development and the individual and public interests require issuing them [al-Fatawa, 8th., Cairo: 1975, pp. 351-355]. Additionally, Shaltut agreed to any transaction with any fixed interest in advance, if it was offered by the Muslim state or any establishments subsidiary to the state or affiliated with it, as it assumed that there is no exploitation of either party in such cases." |
