What is the legal status concerning blood-money for slaves in various stages of manumission?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Blood-Money (Diyyāt)
Primary text
There is no difference in the ruling regarding blood-money for a legally owned slave ('abid), a slave designated for future manumission (mudabbar), a contracted manumitted slave (mukatab), or a mother who bore her master's child (umm walad). The consensus among the general body of jurists, according to Al-Khattabi, is that the mukatab remains a slave regarding both causing injury and suffering injury until the last dirham of his freedom price is paid.
Supporting text
Ibrahim Al-Nakh'i held that the mukatab's Diyya should be proportional: the portion corresponding to the amount he has already paid toward his freedom is calculated as the Diyya of a free person, and the remaining portion is calculated as the Diyya of a slave. A narration attributed to Ali, peace be upon him, exists regarding this matter. Furthermore, Abu Dawud in his Sunan and Imam Ahmad in his Musnad narrated from Ibn Abbas that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, ruled concerning a mukatab who is killed that his Diyya is paid according to what he has paid of his manumission price (as a free person), and the remainder is the Diyya of a slave. Al-Khattabi affirmed that if this Hadith is authenticated, it must be followed, provided it is not abrogated or contradicted by a stronger authority.