Fatwa ID: 08463
Written by Alimah Maryam Badshah
Question:
I mistakenly followed that the iftar timing is end time for seheri and i did this for 7 days. Iftar time was 6:45 and in my local timetable card seheri end time was 3:41 to 3:36 in 7 days and thought that I have to make up qadha for 7 rozas since it is not valid
Then I got to know that there is Ikhtelaf (difference of opinion) among scholars on timing of Fajr after watching videos of Mufti Tariq Masood, one group says 18 degree other says it is 15, Mufti Rashid Ahmad Ludhianvi (ra) are in the view of 15 degree so is Mufti Tariq Masood and Mufti Tariq Masood said that majority of the calculation method in Indian subcontinent is according to 18 degree but if we follow 15 degree we still have 10 to 15 min time in India and Pakistan and in the countries such as Norway the time is even more so i calculated the time in Islamic finder after getting this link from one of a fatwa in Askimam, and there default calculation method was according to Islamic University of science Karachi where they follow 18 degree and I changed it to Islamic society of North America where they follow 15 degree as Mufti rashid Ahmad Ludhianvi (ra) and set my city which is Mumbai and saw that I was within the time, Fajr time according to university of science Karachi (18 degree) is 5:38 and according to Islamic society of north America (15 degree) it is 5:51, so is it permissible for me to leave things as it and not make up qadha for it and rely upon 15 degree? I fear that if I tell this to my brother he’ll scold at me since even he was following me in time as he was sleepy so if it is valid I don’t have to tell him
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
When a person accidentally eats or drinks thinking that it is sehri (suhoor), when in fact the time has passed, only Qadha’ will be due upon them and not Kaffarah. This is due to it being a mistake and not a deliberate breaking of the fast. One should note that Sehri occurs at night and that Fajr starts when light appears horizontally across the horizon before sunrise (subha sadiq).[1]
The issue regarding degrees other than 18 for the beginning of Fajr is a complex matter that involves several factors, such as season, altitude and latitude, to name a few. This dilemma is mostly faced by those living in high latitudes far from the equator, where the sun does not fully set below 18 degrees on the longest day of the year.
Regardless, as Mumbai is close to the equator it is unlikely to experience this problem. It is also important to keep in mind that the majority of scholars in India are under consensus of following 18 degrees. If there is a masjid which follows 15 degrees in your locality due to a legitimate reason it would be permissible for you to follow said timings. If this is not the case, it would be wrong for you to follow 15 degrees. Understand that mistakes can happen and that what has already occurred was not deliberate. Ask Allah (swt) for forgiveness, inform your brother of this mistake, and perform your 7 Qadha’.[2]
References:
[1]
وَلَوْ تَسَحَّرَ عَلَى ظَنِّ أَنَّ الْفَجْرَ لَمْ يَطْلُعْ فَإِذَا هُوَ طَالِعٌ أَوْ أَفْطَرَ عَلَى ظَنِّ أَنَّ الشَّمْسَ قَدْ غَرَبَتْ فَإِذَا هِيَ لَمْ تَغْرُبْ فَعَلَيْهِ الْقَضَاءُ وَلَا كَفَّارَةَ لِأَنَّهُ لَمْ يُفْطِرْ مُتَعَمِّدًا بَلْ خَاطِئًا أَلَا تَرَى أَنَّهُ لَا إثْمَ عَلَيْهِ.
Badā’i’ Al-Ṣanā’i’ (Vol.2, pg.100, Dār Al-Kutub Al-’Ilmiyyah)
قَوْلُهُ: أَوْ تَسَحَّرَ إلَخْ) أَيْ يَجِبُ عَلَيْهِ الْقَضَاءُ دُونَ الْكَفَّارَةِ؛ لِأَنَّ الْجِنَايَةَ قَاصِرَةٌ وَهِيَ جِنَايَةُ عَدَمِ التَّثَبُّتِ لَا جِنَايَةُ الْإِفْطَارِ؛ لِأَنَّهُ لَمْ يُفْسِدْهُ، وَلِهَذَا صَرَّحُوا بِعَدَمِ الْإِثْمِ عَلَيْهِ… وَصَرَّحُوا بِأَنَّ فِيهِ إثْمَ تَرْكِ الْعَزِيمَةِ وَالْمُبَالَغَةِ فِي التَّثَبُّتِ حَالَةَ الرَّمْيِ بَحْرٌ عَنْ الْفَتْحِ.
قُلْت: لَكِنَّ الظَّاهِرَ عَدَمُ الْإِثْمِ هُنَا أَصْلًا بِدَلِيلِ عَدَمِ وُجُوبِ الْكَفَّارَةِ هُنَا… لِأَنَّهُ لَوْ ظَنَّ الطُّلُوعَ وَأَكَلَ مَعَ ذَلِكَ ثُمَّ تَبَيَّنَ صِحَّةَ ظَنِّهِ، فَعَلَيْهِ الْقَضَاءُ وَلَا كَفَّارَةَ؛
Raddul Mukhtār (Vol.2, pg.405, Dār Al-Fiqr)
[2]
(مِنْ) أَوَّلِ (طُلُوعِ الْفَجْرِ الثَّانِي) وَهُوَ الْبَيَاضُ الْمُنْتَشِرُ الْمُسْتَطِيرُ لَا الْمُسْتَطِيلُ (إلَى) قُبَيْلِ (طُلُوعِ ذُكَاءَ)
Raddul Mukhtār (Vol.1, pg.359, Dār Al-Fiqr)
https://fiqhcouncil.org/fifteen-or-eighteen-degrees-calculating-prayer-fasting-times-in-islam/
https://moonsighting.com/how-we.html
Only Allah knows best.
Written by Alimah Maryam Badshah
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
