Is a sick person or an elderly man legally accountable (to pay *aqilah* liability) if they have not reached the extreme stage of infirmity or senility?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Blood-Money (Diyyāt)
Primary text
A sick person who has not reached the stage of incapacitating illness (*zamanah*) and an elderly man who has not reached extreme old age (*hirm*) are considered capable of offering aid and sympathy, and therefore, they are legally accountable for *aqilah* liability. The opinion aligns with the view of Al-Shafi'i in this matter.
Supporting text
A dissenting view holds that neither the severely sick nor the extremely old are accountable because they are not considered capable of offering aid, evidenced by the fact that they are exempt from *jihad* and are not to be killed if they are among the enemy combatants. Furthermore, the blind man is excluded for the same reason. The counter-argument to this is that they are capable of offering sympathy, which is why Zakat is obligatory upon them, but this is refuted by the status of minors and the insane.