Validity of a slave's manumission by the buyer when the buyer intended to free him for his (the buyer's) expiation, upon the slave's initial purchase for that purpose.
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Expiations
Primary text
If a person buys a slave specifically intending for that purchase to cover the requirement for expiation (kaffarah) and then the slave is freed (presumably by the seller or through law upon purchase), this manumission does not suffice for the buyer's expiation. This position is held by Malik, Al-Shafi'i, and Abu Thawr. The evidence relies on the Divine command: {Then the freeing of a neck} [Quran 4:92]. Freeing (Tahrir) is the act of manumission, and if the manumission did not occur through the buyer's direct act of freeing, the command is not fulfilled. Furthermore, if the slave's manumission is due for another reason, it does not suffice, such as if the buyer inherited him intending to free him for expiation, or in the case of an Umm Walad (a female slave who bore her master a child).
Supporting text
The Hanafis (Ashaab al-Ra'y) permit this based on juristic preference (Istihsan), arguing that since the seller's expiation is fulfilled by the freeing, the buyer's expiation should also be fulfilled, analogous to other situations. This view is countered by noting that the seller frees the slave, whereas the buyer does not; rather, the freeing occurs by the decree of the Lawgiver, independent of the buyer's direct will. Additionally, the seller is not obligated to free the slave to the buyer, unlike the buyer's obligation in this context.