Question:-
My late father, among other things, left behind two firearms. The rest of the estate has been dissolved. It is just the firearms that are now remaining. The son intends taking one firearm, which is the shotgun, and the son-in-law intends taking the other firearm, which is the handgun. What is the correct manner of passing them over?
Answer:-
The query states that there are two firearms remaining in your Marhoom father’s estate. The Marhoom’s daughter’s husband (the Marhoom’s son-in-law) intends taking one firearm (the handgun) for himself, whilst one of the Marhoom’s sons, from his first marriage, intends taking the other firearm (the shotgun).
There are two ways of passing over the firearms to the intended recipients. The firearms can either be gifted to the intended recipients with the consent of all the heirs, without asking for any recompense whatsoever. In this case, the firearms will be given to the recipients as a Hadya.
The second method is by each heir selling his/her portion of the firearms. It is not necessary that the heirs sell their shares of the firearm according to the valuation provided by the firearm dealer. For example, let us assume that the handgun was valued at R1000.00 by the dealer. The Marhoom’s wife inherits 12.5% of the estate, the 3 sons inherit 25% each, and the daughter inherits 12.5%. It is not necessary for the wife and daughter to sell their shares of the firearm at R125.00, nor is it necessary for the son’s to sell their shares of the firearm at R250.00. The valuation of the dealer can be used as a guide, however, it is not necessary to adhere to the dealer’s valuation when concluding the transaction. A sale is concluded in Shariah (with a proposal from one side and acceptance from the other side) at any given price that both the buyer and seller happily agree upon.
Therefore, each heir reserves the right to sell his/her portion of the handgun at any price that both parties (the buyer and seller) agree upon. If they agree to sell their share of the firearm in accordance to the dealer’s valuation (which is R125.00 in our example for the wife and daughter or R250.00 for the sons), then they are free to do so. Or, if they wish to sell the firearm at a price lower or higher than the dealer’s valuation, then they are at liberty to do so. In conclusion, each heir will determine the price at which they wish to sell their share of the firearm to the purchasers.
As for the son that will be purchasing the shotgun, he is simply required to purchase the shares of his stepmother, sister, real brother and consanguine brother.
كتاب البيوع هو مبادلة المال بالمال بالتّراضي ويلزم بإيجابٍ وقبولٍ وبتعاطٍ وأيٌّ قام عن المجلس قبل القبول بطل الإيجاب ولا بدّ من معرفة قدر ووصف ثمنٍ غير مشارٍ لا مشار وصحّ بثمنٍ حالٍّ وبأجلٍ معلومٍ (كنز الدقائق ص406 ج1 – كتاب البيوع)
ALLAH TA’ALA KNOWS BEST!
ANSWERED BY:
Mufti Mohammed Desai
Date: 29 Rajab 1443 / 03 March 2022
