Zakat is one of the five fundamental principles of Islam .
It stands second in ranking in the Quran after Salah i.e. prayers. In Arabic, it stands for purification. Zakat is used a means to purify the wealth of a person. It is calculated as 2.5 percent on the total wealth of a person. There is a minimum threshold (nisab) upon accumulation of wealth whereupon the payment of Zakat or charity becomes obligatory upon a Muslim believer. The minimum threshold has been calculated to be upon 85 grams of gold or 595 grams of silver or equivalent amount of money which has been saved for an entire year.
As per the current scenario, gold has become a precious metal and is way expensive than the value of silver, thus once your nisab reaches the silver limit prescribed it becomes obligatory to pay zakat. Zakat when got ordained in the Quran, the able believers were supposed to pay to the indigent, needy and destitute so that these weaker sections of the Muslims had enough for survival.
The Quran mentions the Zakat at various places like, for example, in suras: 7:156, 9:60, 19:31, 19:55, 21:73, 23:4, 27:3, 30:39, 31:4 and 41:7. According to the Quran’s Surah Al-Tawba, there are eight categories of people (asnaf) who qualify to benefit from zakat funds.
“Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer the (funds); for those whose hearts have been (recently) reconciled (to Truth); for those in bondage and in debt; in the cause of Allah; and for the wayfarer: (thus is it) ordained by Allah, and Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom.”
— Qur’an, Surah 9 (Al-Tawba), Verse 60
Islamic scholars have traditionally interpreted this verse as identifying the following eight categories of Muslim causes to be the proper recipients of zakat:
- Those living without means of livelihood (Al-Fuqarā’), the poor
- Those who cannot meet their basic needs (Al-Masākīn), the needy
- To zakat collectors (Al-Āmilīyn ‘Alihā)
- To persuade those sympathetic to or expected to convert to Islam (Al-Mu’allafatu Qulūbuhum), recent converts to Islam, and potential allies in the cause of Islam
- To free from slavery or servitude (Fir-Riqāb), slaves of Muslims or captives who have or intend to free from their master
- Those who have incurred overwhelming debts while attempting to satisfy their basic needs (Al-Ghārimīn), debtors who in pursuit of a worthy goal incurred a debt
- Those fighting for a religious cause or a cause of God (Fī Sabīlillāh), or for Jihad in the way of Allah by means of pen, word, or sword, or for Islamic warriors who fight against the unbelievers but are not salaried soldiers.
- Wayfarers, stranded travellers (Ibnu Al-Sabīl), travellers who are traveling with a worthy goal but cannot reach their destination without financial assistance.[1]
A lot of Muslims around the world are beneficiaries of the zakat that is paid through the well-off persons, those beneficiaries falling in of the eight categories mentioned above. Since slavery system has been abolished across the world, using of zakat to set free a slave has become obsolete. But when several scholars of Islam had been consulted regarding setting the prisoners free by paying their bail amounts. Fines or sureties, the scholars have deemed it permissible to utilize the zakat funds in the release of these prisoners from jail. It is a fantastic way to utilize the zakat in releasing the prisoners who are languishing behind the bars, since they do not possess sufficient means to furnish their bail amounts.
If this is viewed from the perspective of crime reduction and prevention in the society, it provides almost an absolute solution. Indian prison systems do not have the provisions for segregating the under-trials and convicts, thus there is an imperative danger of the under-trials to be influenced by hardened criminals. Hardened criminals often lure the under-trials with fancy and obscure things and lead them into a never ending path of crime. If this must be stopped, the under-trials must be released on bail and they would return to their normal lives during the pendency of the trial thus being prevented to extreme exposure to criminal activities. All this is only possible if the Muslims ponder upon this situation and come forward and donate their zakat to release the under-trials so that they can help bring a positive change in society.