Is a person who accuses another man of adultery with a specific woman a slanderer against both?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Ḥudūd (Prescribed Penalties)
Primary text
If a man states to another man, 'You committed adultery with so-and-so,' he is a slanderer (qadhif) against both the accused man and the woman involved. This applies even if the confession of adultery does not result in the prescribed punishment (hadd) for the act itself. Ibn al-Mundhir and Abu Thawr adhere to this view, which aligns with the school of Shafi'i.
Supporting text
Abu Hanifa holds that the punishment for slander is not incumbent because it is conceivable that the accused committed the act with the woman without her being legally adulterous, perhaps due to coercion or confusion (shubha).