Fatwa ID: 01890

Answered by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Question:

How would the following estate be distributed according to the Shariah where one of the sons had invested with his father in purchasing the land and the subsequent building on top and then the father passes away.

Answer:

There are two possible situations regarding the aforementioned scenario.

The first situation is that the 5 Lakh the eldest son gave to his father is considered as a gift. In other words he gave the amount to assist his father so that he can purchase the land and build on it for the benefit of himself and his children. The eldest son did not intend to take a specific share from the land and the building other than what he will receive from his father's inheritance.

In this situation, the current value of the land and the building on top will be distributed equally between all four sons.

It is similar to one investing the capital into a business and then delegating the management of it to one person and he deals with it the way he seems fit and appropriate for the benefit of the investors. (Maariful Quran p.597 v.5)

The second situation is where the eldest son gave the 5 Lakh on the basis that he will be entitled to a separate share of the property. In other words he invested it like a business where he was expecting a tangible return of his investment in the form of actual segregated land or property.

In this situation, after calculating the current market value of the foundation and the ground floor building, the eldest son will subtract one third of the value for himself and the remaining will be distributed between the four sons.

Only Allah Knows Best

Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham