Are women, minors, the insane, or the poor included in bearing the responsibility of the 'Aqilah for Diyah?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Blood-Money (Diyyāt)
Primary text
The overwhelming majority of scholars, including Malik, Al-Shafi'i, and the companions of Al-Nu'man (Abu Hanifah's school), agree that women and minors who have not reached puberty do not assume the responsibility of the 'Aqilah alongside the main group. Furthermore, it is agreed upon that the poor individual is not obligated to bear any portion of the Diyah. This consensus is reported by Ibn al-Mundhir among all known scholars. The primary reason is that bearing the 'Aqilah is a form of mutual support (muwasah), which does not fall upon the poor, similar to Zakah. Moreover, the obligation was placed upon the 'Aqilah to lessen the burden on the killer; thus, imposing it on someone with no involvement in the crime, especially the poor person who cannot afford it, is improper. Finally, it is agreed that no member of the 'Aqilah is burdened with what is excessively difficult or ruinous to their property, and imposing Diyah on the poor often falls into this category.
Supporting text
Some companions of our school (Hanbali) narrated from Malik and Abu Hanifah that the poor person does have a share in bearing the liability. Abu al-Khattab mentioned this as a narration from Ahmad, based on the reasoning that the poor person is capable of providing support (nusrata) and thus should be part of the 'Aqilah like the wealthy. The sounder opinion rejects this because women, minors, and the insane are excluded because the responsibility involves mutual support (tanaasur), and they are not considered among those capable of providing such support (Ahl al-Nusra).