Tafsir of An-Nur 24:4

Definition of Qadhf (Accusation): Accusation occurs through the charge of zina (adultery/fornication) or otherwise. Two things indicate that the intended meaning here is the charge of zina:

1. The mention of "chaste women" immediately following the mention of "adulteresses."
2. The requirement of four witnesses; for accusations other than zina, two witnesses suffice.

Types of Accusation:

• Accusation of Zina: When a free, sane, adult person says to a chaste person: "O adulteress," "O adulterer," "O son of an adulterer," "O son of an adulteress," "O child of zina," "You are not your father’s," or "You are not born of a legitimate union."
• Accusation other than Zina: Saying: "O eater of usury," "O drinker of wine," "O Jew," "O Magian," "O corrupt person (fasiq)," "O vile one," or "O you who suck your mother’s clitoris." For this, ta’zir (discretionary punishment) is applied, which must not reach the minimum punishment for slaves (forty lashes), but rather be less. Abu Yusuf said: It is permissible to reach seventy-nine lashes, and he said: The Imam may apply ta’zir up to one hundred.

Conditions for Ihsan (Chastity): There are five: freedom, adulthood, sanity, Islam, and virtue.

Regarding the Witnesses: "With four witnesses" (bi-arba‘ati shuhada’): It is read with tanwin (indefinite), where shuhada’ is an adjective.

• Question: Must they testify together or separately?
• Answer: According to Abu Hanifa and his companions, they must be present in one session; if they arrive separately, they are considered accusers (qadhfah). According to al-Shafi‘i, it is permissible for them to arrive separately.
• Question: Can the husband of the accused be one of them?
• Answer: It is permissible according to Abu Hanifa, contrary to al-Shafi‘i.

Execution of the Punishment:

• Question: How is the accuser lashed?
• Answer: Like the adulterer, except that no clothing is removed from him except what is removed from a woman (i.e., padding and fur linings). The female accuser is treated like the female adulterer.
• Severity of Lashes: The most severe is ta’zir, then the punishment for zina, then the punishment for wine-drinking, then the punishment for the accuser. They say this is because the cause of his punishment is susceptible to both truth and falsehood, yet he is punished to protect reputations and deter their violation.

If the Accused is not Chaste:

• Question: What if the accused is not chaste?
• Answer: The accuser is given ta’zir but not the hadd (prescribed punishment), unless the accused is known for the very thing they were accused of, in which case there is neither hadd nor ta’zir.

Rejection of Testimony:

• Abu Hanifa: Rejection of the accuser’s testimony is contingent upon the completion of the hadd. If he testifies before the hadd or before its completion, his testimony is accepted. Once the hadd is completed, his testimony is never accepted, even if he repents and becomes among the righteous and pious.
• Al-Shafi‘i: Rejection of testimony is linked to the act of accusation itself. If he repents from the accusation by retracting it, his testimony becomes acceptable again. Both rely on the verse. Abu Hanifa treats the consequence of the condition (the accusation) as the lashing and the permanent rejection of testimony. He treats "And those are the fasiqun (corrupt)" as a new statement, not part of the conditional consequence. "Except those who repent" is an exception from the fasiqun. Al-Shafi‘i treats both sentences as the consequence, but interprets "permanence" as the duration of his state as an accuser, which ends with repentance.

The Meaning of the Verse: The apparent structure of the verse suggests that all three sentences together constitute the consequence of the condition: "Whoever accuses chaste women, then lash them, reject their testimony, and declare them corrupt—unless they repent and reform, for Allah is Forgiving and Merciful," meaning they are no longer lashed, rejected, or declared corrupt.

Regarding the Infidel:

• Question: An infidel may accuse someone, then repent from disbelief, and his testimony is accepted by consensus. Yet a Muslim accuser repents and his testimony is not accepted (according to Abu Hanifa). Is accusation with disbelief lighter than accusation with Islam?
• Answer: Muslims do not care about the accusations of infidels because they are known for their enmity and false attacks; thus, the accused does not suffer the same shame and disgrace as they would from a fellow Muslim. Therefore, the punishment for the Muslim accuser is intensified as a deterrent.

Pardon:

• Question: Can the accused or the Imam pardon the hadd of the accuser?
• Answer: They may do so before the witnesses testify and the hadd is established. The accused is encouraged not to prosecute the accuser. It is good for the Imam to urge the accused to suppress their anger. Once the hadd is established, neither may pardon it, as it becomes a pure right of Allah; hence, it cannot be settled for money.

Inheritance of the Hadd:

• Question: Is the hadd inherited?
• Answer: According to Abu Hanifa, it is not, based on the Prophet’s saying: "The hadd is not inherited." According to al-Shafi‘i, it is. If the accuser repents before the hadd is established, it is dropped. It is said this verse was revealed regarding Hassan ibn Thabit when he repented for what he said about ‘A’isha.