Fatwa ID: 07592
Answered by: Maulana Nuski Cassim
Question:
My brother purchased certain properties in a housing scheme and got them registered in the name of his brothers and sisters.
All Brothers and sisters wanted to buy plots but he told us that it was a gift (oral i.e. no gift deed) from him.
However, he placed all plot files in his custody and told all brothers and sisters that they could construct and settle in these plots but they could not sell them.
He often used to say that these are my plots but you can still settle in these plots but cannot sell them. After his death, his wife gave all his brothers and sisters the files of plots. Now, as per Pakistan’s law, these plots belong to his brothers and sisters.
Question:- From an Islamic perspective, did the gifting actually happen?
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
Yes, Islamically the gift is considered to have happened granted the fact that your brother purchased these properties/plots and registered them in the name of your siblings. This is despite him mentioning that you cannot sell them.
The registering of the names via legal documentation serves as a contract and denotes possession, i.e. the gift being transferred.[1]
In addition, your brother also orally mentioned that the purchased plots are gifts from him to you and your siblings.[2]
Hence, the plots now correctly belong to the siblings.
Only Allah knows best.
Written by Maulana Nuski Cassim
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
1.
“ولا تملك عند أصحابنا رحم الله جميعا إلا بالقبض“
شرح مختصر الكرخي، كتاب الهبة، ج ٧، صفحة ٤٣٣، مكتبة الأسفار
2.
“وتنعقد الهبة بقوله: وهبت ونحلت وأعطيت وأطعمتك هذا الطعام وجعلت هذا الثوب لك…”
مختصر القدوري، كتاب الهبة، صفحة ٥٠٨، مكتبة البشرى
“وإذا كانت العين في يد الموهوب ملكها بالهبة“
مختصر القدوري، كتاب الهبة، صفحة ٥٠٩، مكتبة البشرى