Crime and Punishment in Islamic Law

The concepts of citizenship and the accountability of government have never been discussed as separate topics in Islamic Jurisprudence. In Citizenship and Accountability of Government: An Islamic Perspective, Prof. M.H. Kamali brings together these two subjects, traces their origins in the Qur’an, theSunnah of the Prophet and the practice of the first four caliphs; follows their integration under different branches and discussions of the rights and obligations of Muslims in Islamic law; and finally, advances possible applications for each subject to modern Muslim states and to the position of Muslims living in non-Muslim countries.

Citizenship and Accountability of Government: An Islamic Perspective includes discussions of: the definitions of citizenship; the rights of citizens; the duties of citizens; citizenship laws; the concepts of dar al-Islam (abode of Islam); dar al-harb (abode of war) and the dar al-‘ahd (abode of treaty); the ummah and the nation-state; government as a trust; the selection of officials; the relationship between authority and citizens; corruption and the misuse of public funds; despotism and dynastic misrule; the right of complaint; the limits of obedience; impeachment of officials and heads of state; the foundation of institutions of accountability.

In addition to the topics of citizenship and accountability of government, this volume contains a discussion of freedom of movement in Islam which is the last of the fundamental rights in Prof. M.H. Kamali’s series on fundamental rights and liberties in Islam. Freedom of movement is included in this volume as it was never discussed as a separate topic in Islamic jurisprudence and therefore has certain similarities with the two other subjects of this volume.

Formal prayer (salat) is the second pillar of Islam, and the most important of a Muslim’s acts of worship. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “The first of one’s actions for which a slave of Allah will be held accountable on the Day of Judgment will be one’s prayers. If they are correct and accounted for, then he (or she) will have succeeded (gained paradise); and if they are lacking, then he (or she) will have failed (lost paradise). If there is something defective in his (or her) obligatory prayers, the Lord will say: ‘See if my slave has any supererogatory prayers with which that which was defective in his (or her) obligatory prayers may be completed. Then the rest of his (or her) deeds will be judged in like manner.” (At-Tirmidhi and others) Shaykh Mashhur Hasan Salman has compiled a list of the most common errors that we make when we pray, discussing and explaining each one. This book is a valuable aid to Muslims hoping to perfect their prayers, so that their prayers may be free of defects and acceptable to Allah. This new and revised edition of the English translation of his work presents the text in a fluent, highly readable style.