‘Right of admission’ sign at Masajid
Question:-
Please advise if it is permissible to have “right of admission” signage at our Masjids. The reason given is to exclude particular groups of people who have incorrect beliefs.
Answer:-
Under normal circumstances, it is not permissible to prevent any person from entering the Masjid. Allah Ta’ala states in the Quraan Sharif, “Who can do greater wrong than the one who prevents the name of Allah from being taken in the Masaajid and does all he can to destroy them?”[Baqarah Verse 114]
However, we are living in an era where there are many sects and groups that refer to themselves as ‘Muslim’ but are, actually, out of the fold of Islam as a result of their beliefs of Kufr. However, the followers of these sects are generally unknown to us due to them concealing their beliefs. We will only know of their beliefs of Kufr if it is explicitly expressed before us and their Kufr is made known to us. Until then, we cannot judge any person or label him or her as a Kaafir. This, in conclusion, means that we cannot remove any person from the Masjid based on our assumption that they are out of the fold of Islam.
Notwithstanding the above, if it is proven that a certain sect is out of the fold of Islam (as a result of their Kufr beliefs), and certain individuals openly claim to subscribe to the beliefs of that particular sect, then these followers should be regarded as disbelievers and prevented from entering the Masjid, as many a time, these individuals propagate their beliefs of falsehood in the Masjid (by engaging in discussion with fellow Musallis) and as a result, influence simple-minded people. The result of such influence can be clearly seen amongst many Muslim youth at the universities, who now openly declare their Kufr and have even become agents for such deviated sects. It is for this reason that we assume that the signage has been posted, and if this is the actual reason, then there is no harm in doing so.
جب تک ناپاک ہونے کا علم نہ ہو اور دوسری بھی کوئی چیز مضرت ومفسدہ نہ ہو تو اجازت ہے (فتاوی محمودیہ ص۲۴۲ ج۱۵)
ALLAH TA’ALA KNOWS BEST!
ANSWERED BY:-
Mufti Mohammed Desai
Date: 11 Muharram 1444 / 10 August 2022