Does the seller's disposition of the item during the buyer's option period constitute a revocation (faskh) of the sale?

Chapter on the Option of the Two Parties in Sale

Al-Mughni

Book of Sales

Book 12 · Issue 5 · Bab 2

Open in Qurani

Primary text

If the seller disposes of the item in a manner requiring ownership, it constitutes a revocation of the sale. This is the view of Abu Hanifa and Al-Shafi'i, based on the principle that the seller, as one of the contracting parties, treating the item as his choice is similar to the buyer's action. There is another narration from Imam Ahmad stating that the sale is not revoked because ownership has already transferred from him, so his disposition is not a retrieval of it, similar to finding one's property held by an insolvent person and disposing of it.