Bribery
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي ; وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي ; وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِنْ لِسَانِي ; يَفْقَهُوا قَوْلِي
Bribery means giving money to someone through whom a person takes something which he / she has no right to. For example: bribing a judge to get verdict in favour (wrongfully), or bribing an official to give him preference over others or to get other favours like allotment of a contract etc.
Bribery is a big sin in Islam. Allah says:
وَلا تَأْكُلُوا أَمْوَالَكُمْ بَيْنَكُمْ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتُدْلُوا بِهَا إِلَى الْحُكَّامِ لِتَأْكُلُوا فَرِيقاً مِنْ أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ بِالإِثْمِ وَأَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ
"And eat up not one another's property unjustly, nor give bribery to the rulers that you may knowingly eat up a part of the property of others sinfully."
(Aayah No. 188, Surah Al-Baqarah, Chapter No. 2, Holy Qur'an).
We see that bribery is clearly prohibited by Allah. One thing to highlight in this glorious verse of Holy Qur'an is that two different messages can be inferred upon from here. One is that Allah prohibits us from eating property of others sinfully. Second is the prohibition of giving bribe to the rulers. And when bribery comes into play, eating another's right is bound to come into effect.
Bribery is one of the biggest culprits creating havoc among the society, especially in the countries of Indian sub-continent (i.e. India, Pakistan etc.). Everyone is ready to offer bribe to get his / her work done. And almost all working in positions that matter, if not all, are always waiting to get their share of bribe from the public. It goes from bottom to top; a peon is seen taking bribe, and so is a Manager. The levels and amounts of bribery may differ according to the position held by the taker, but the filthy act is deep embedded among the people, irrespective of religion.
Small examples show our approach in this matter. These examples can be observed in routine works of almost all the offices (particularly government offices). Have a look:
1. We are in a long queue, several places behind, and we simply offer few bucks to some mediators who can get our work done earlier than others who spend their time lining up.
2. There comes an announcement from government regarding a housing scheme where homes are to be allotted to the common public, based on a draw. However, majority of the people tend to get the allotment in their favour wrongfully, without going through the hassles of draw. How? By bribing the officials involved in it.
3. Candidates are ready to pay ample amount of money to get a particular job, irrespective of the fact that they are qualified for it or not; and a qualified deserving candidate ends up on losing side.
4. Electoral processes nowadays (be it of smaller positions or bigger ones) are not spared.
5. Admissions to educational institutions are easier for people who have money, courtesy bribery.
6. Businesses prosper on bribes.
The list can go on and on. What to talk about others, our Muslim fellows are equally a part of this corrupt system. To add to the woes of corruption, bribery has found its way into the affairs of administration related to Hajj pilgrimage. There has been a recent incident about a government official (probably a minister) in Pakistan being sacked from his position because of his involvement in misappropriating funds from the Hajj pilgrims, giving and taking money as a favour to some. What a shame?
Who is a bigger sinner: the taker or the giver?
I had been in discussion with my friends on this subject many times. Some of the Muslims put forward an excuse that because we are asked to give so we give. Therefore, according to them it is the taker who is doing a sin.
True, the one who takes bribe is doing a big sin. But the giver is also responsible. Let me quote a hadith or two in this context.
Abdullah bin Amr (RA) narrated: Allah's Messenger (PBUH) cursed the one who bribes and the one who takes bribe.
(Hadith No. 1337, Chapters on Judgements, Jami' At-Tirmidhi, Vol. 3).
In another narration,
Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated: Allah's Messenger (PBUH) cursed the one who bribes and the one who takes a bribe for judgement.
(Hadith No. 1336, Chapters on Judgement, Jami' At-Tirmidhi, Vol. 3).
If we go back to the verse of Holy Qur'an mentioned at the start of our discussion and read the two ahadith mentioned above, we can see that both the giver and the taker of bribe are sinners, although Allah is more specifically ordering not to give bribery i.e. addressing the giver.
Some of the Muslims who enjoy being a part of this filthy sin put forward one stupid excuse in their defense. These are those who are in influential positions and are busy minting money through bribery. They say that it is not haraam to take bribery from Non-Muslims. What a mockery? I feel pity for people who put forward such false excuses to act like an ostrich (an ostrich has a tendency of hiding her face in her feathers and feeling that now no one can see her since she cannot see anyone). Please get out of this disillusion. Islam does not allow any Muslim to eat property of any Non-Muslim unjustly. Islam does not allow any Muslim to oppress any Non-Muslim. Refer to following verse of Holy Qur'an:
لا يَنْهَاكُمْ اللَّهُ عَنْ الَّذِينَ لَمْ يُقَاتِلُوكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ وَلَمْ يُخْرِجُوكُمْ مِنْ دِيَارِكُمْ أَنْ تَبَرُّوهُمْ وَتُقْسِطُوا إِلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُقْسِطِينَ
"Allah does not forbid you to deal justly and kindly with those who fought not against you on account of religion nor drove you out of your homes. Verily, Allah loves those who deal with equity."
(Aayah No. 8, Surah Al-Mumtahanah, Chapter No. 60, Holy Qur'an).
This aayah tells us that we have to deal justly even with Non-Muslims. Therefore, all earnings accumulated through bribery in such a manner are haraam.
And the sin of bribery is not limited to the giver and taker only; in fact every person who is linked to any such deal, like a middleman or a mediator, is also involved in this sin.
When gifts turn into bribery (and / or Riba')
Islam advocates exchange of gifts among the fellow Muslims. Giving and taking of gifts may involve some persons who are placed in high influential positions. But the gifts should not be confused with bribery. Both are totally different. Gifts are encouraged in Islam, whereas bribery is prohibited in Islam. However, there is one case where gifts take shape of bribe (or even Riba'). Following verse of Holy Qur'an tells us about it:
وَمَا آتَيْتُمْ مِنْ رِباً لِيَرْبُوَا فِي أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ فَلا يَرْبُوا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ
"And that which you give in Riba' (the gifts), in order that it may increase from other people's property, has no increase with Allah."
(Aayah No. 39, Surah Ar-Rūm, Chapter No. 30, Holy Qur'an).
This aayah gives a similar message like the one mentioned in the start (Aayah No. 188, Surah Al-Baqarah). There Allah orders us not to bribe the rulers to eat up property of others unjustly. The aayah mentioned above supports it by telling us that if we give gifts to the rulers (or higher officials etc.) in order to get their undue favours with an intention of getting part of others' property unjustly, then such a gift is Riba'.
One exception
We have talked about the sin of bribery giver. We have talked about sin of bribery taker. However, there is one exception for the one who gives bribe in one particular case. It is allowed to give bribe if a person is not able to attain his / her rights in any other normal way. If a person is deprived of his rights, there is no harm on his part to give the bribe he is asked for in order to get his rights. In such a case, the sin is totally on the taker, the receiver. However, this is the last resort to be adopted by a Muslim.
There is a unanimous consensus among all the scholars of all school of thoughts on this exception.
Concluding Remarks
All of us know that bribery is a big sin, either way, giving or taking. Still the attachment to the worldly things is so deep and strong that it doesn't allow us to look beyond. Give a thought to what are the after-effects of bribery. The more bribery gets prevalent, the bigger becomes the gap between the rich and poor. People get a taste of blood and gradually start living on haraam earnings. They become complacent towards the responsibilities of their duties. Corruption gets deep rooted. One who pays a hefty sum (as a bribe) to get a government position tends to get back his money and more from others, and it goes on and on. To sum it up, it leads to a series of wrong-doings. This spreads and maligns the society at a rate much faster than what cancer does to the body of a victim.
Remember, it is not correct on part of a Muslim to be a part of bribery system. It is prohibited for a Muslim to take bribe, to give bribe and to be a mediator in any of the deals based on bribery.
Stay away from this sin. If we cannot stop this sin then at least we can do our part by not being a part of it in any manner.
Get up. Do the needful. Clean yourself.
Remove this malignancy from the society.
And Allah knows best.
May Allah forgive me if I am wrong and guide us to the right path…Ameen.
سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُون َ ; وَسَلامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ ; وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ.
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