What is the prescribed punishment (Hadd) for a slave who defames a free, married man (Muhsan)?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Ḥudūd (Prescribed Penalties)
Primary text
There is a consensus among scholars that the Hadd must be applied to a slave who defames a free, married man, as this falls under the general scope of the relevant Quranic verse. The majority of scholars hold that the prescribed punishment is forty lashes. This view is supported by narration from Abdullah bin 'Amr bin al-'As, stating that he observed Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthman, and subsequent Caliphs never striking a slave more than forty lashes for defamation. The reasoning supporting this is the established consensus transmitted from the Companions, and because the Hadd is divisible, the slave's share is half that of a free person, similar to the Hadd for fornication (Zina), which serves to specify the generality of the verse.
Supporting text
An alternative view holds that the slave should receive eighty lashes. This position is attributed to Abu Bakr bin Muhammad bin 'Amr bin Hazm, Qabisa, and 'Umar bin 'Abd al-'Aziz, who seemingly relied on the generality of the Quranic verse. This opinion was refuted by Abdullah bin 'Amr bin al-'As, who stated he never witnessed 'Umar bin al-Khattab administer more than forty lashes to a slave for slander.