Rereading Foundations of Muslim Retribution for the Infidel Dhimmi from the Perspective of Imami Jurisprudence

Abstract

Qisas (retribution) is the counteraction of a deliberate crime against the physical integrity of a person. Although this type of punishment existed in various Abrahamic religions, its implementation in the criminal policy of Islam is subject to the fulfillment of conditions that make it different from other religions. One of the conditions is the equality of the criminal and the victim in religion. Although there is a different point of view among the jurists regarding this condition, the famous Imami jurists and most of the Sunni jurists believe in it. According to that, a Muslim is not retaliated for infidel Dhimmi by a crime. On the contrary, an infidel is retaliated for crime against a Muslim. This issue, which evokes a kind of religious discrimination, needs serious consideration. In the forthcoming research, the author explained and analyzed the foundations and documents of the famous view in a descriptive-analytical way and reached this conclusion. Because of the Incoming criticisms, their jurisprudential documents to prove their point of view are doubted. On the contrary, the documentation of the equality view in retribution between Muslim and infidel is predominant. The group of narrations that observes equality in retribution has priority over other categories in terms of issuing preference and implication preference, such as agreeing with the appearances of the retribution verses.