Shura is a principle of ruling

Shura (consultation) is a key principle of the Islamic Ruling System and underpins all the institutions of the state. In order for the governors and mayors of the provinces and cities to be focussed on their citizens’ affairs and not their own personal interests, they need to be elected by the people they are ruling over. Ibn Atiyyah (d.1147CE) said that:

الشورى من قواعد الشريعة وعزائم الأحكام، ومن لا يستشير أهل العلم والدين، فعزله واجب. هذا ما لا خلاف فيه، وقد مدح الله المؤمنين بقوله: وَأَمْرُهُمْ شُورَى بَيْنَهُمْ

“Shura is one of the principles of Sharia and the firmest of rulings, and whoever does not consult the people of knowledge and religion must be removed. This is something that is not disputed, and Allah praised the believers by saying: وَأَمْرُهُمْ شُورَى بَيْنَهُمْ ‘And their affairs are conducted by mutual consultation.’[1]”[2]

Al-Zamakhshari (d.1143CE) explains the limits of shura in his explanation of the verse,وَشَاوِرْهُمْ فِي الْأَمْرِ “And consult them in the matter”[3]

يعنى في أمر الحرب ونحوه مما لم ينزل عليك فيه وحي لتستظهر برأيهم

“It means in matters of war and the like, in which no revelation has been sent down to you, so that you may rely on their opinion.”[4]

Judge Hussein bin Mohammed Al Mahdi says, “There is no doubt that Shura is comprehensive for public functions because it is among the matters that Allah Almighty has guided us to consult about, as He, the Most High, says: “And consult them in the matter.” And Allah has praised the believers who are adorned with Shura, as He, the Most High, says: “And those who have responded to their Lord and established prayer and whose affair is [determined by] consultation among themselves, and from what We have provided them, they spend.”

So, seeking the opinion of the nation about who will represent it in any of the public matters related to it with the aim of managing the affairs of the nation in the best way is one of the most important duties.”[5]

Judge Hussein bin Mohammed Al Mahdi says, “By public positions (الوَظائِف العامَّة), we mean those with public mandates (الوِلايات العامَّة), which we see as necessary: ministers, senior officers of the armed forces and security forces, brigade and battalion commanders, army commanders, governors, directors of security for governorates and states, heads of courts, whether primary or appellate, and supreme courts, and what corresponds to these positions in the modern state and what is below them of administrative and leadership positions in the contemporary state, including heads and members of the House of Representatives, the Shura Council, and the government, and what comes at the top of these positions, such as the position of Caliph, King, Head of State, or Imam.”[6]

Regarding the appointment of Amirs, the Prophet ﷺ and the Rightly Guided Caliphs established the principle of shura in selecting army commanders and governors.

Akram Al-Umari says, “The selection of governors was done after the Caliph consulted with the senior Companions, and also after the approval of the candidate for the governorship. Umar did not appoint any of his relatives, while Uthman and Ali saw no harm in appointing relatives. Umar often tested whomever he wanted to appoint, and studied his personality closely. He also did not appoint the people of the desert over the people of the city due to the difference in natures, customs and traditions. He appointed Salman al-Farsi (a former slave and non-Arab) as governor of Mada’in, perhaps to draw attention to the principle of equality in Islam.”[7]

After the people of Kufah complained about their governor Ammar ibn Yasir, Umar consulted the sahaba as to whom he should appoint as governor of Kufah, and said to them: “Who could tackle the problems of the people of Kufah for me, and their false accusations against their governors? If I appoint over them a man with good morals, they will regard him as weak, but if I appoint over thein one who is strong, they will force him to overstep the limit with them.”

Then he said: “O people, what do you say about a man who is weak but is a pious Muslim and another who is strong and tough but not so religiously committed? Which one is better suited to be a governor?”

Al-Mugheerah ibn Shu’bah spoke up and said, “O Amir al-Mu’mineen, the weak Muslim’s commitment to Islam counts in his favour but his weakness counts against you and the Muslims; the fact that the strong man is less pious counts against him but his strength counts in your favour and that of the Muslims. So do what you think is best.” ‘Umar said, “You have spoken the truth, O Mugheerah.”

Then he appointed him as governor of Kufah and said to him, “Try to be one whom the righteous trust and the evildoers fear.” Al-Mugheerah said, “I shall try my best O Amir al-Mu’mineen.”[8]

In origin, all executive power is with the caliph via the bay’ah contract. He can in principle appoint and dismiss all his deputies whether they are ministers, governors, commanders or judges. This appointment and dismissal should be based on shura even though it is mandub (recommended) and not obligatory (wajib). The caliph can then bind himself to this shura making it an obligation for him to execute. Abdul-Qadeem Zallum says, “While Shura over the Mubah matters is Mandub, it is allowed for a caliph to bind himself to some or all of these allowed matters. Once he has obliged himself to certain matters, he has to abide by it and is under obligation to carry out the consulted matter. This is derived from the fact that when the post of caliph was offered to ‘Uthman bin Affan, he accepted to proceed according to the way of Abu Bakr and ‘Umar in ruling, as it was proposed to him. This happened in the presence of the Sahabah without any objection from them.”[9]

Removal of Governors

It was an established principle from the time of the Prophet ﷺ that governors should be removed if the people of the province are unhappy with them. These need to be legitimate grievances however, because replacing governors at the drop of a hat creates instability in the province, and should only be performed as a last resort.

In the time of the Prophet ﷺ, Al-Ala’ ibn Al-Hadrami was the governor of Bahrain which was inhabited by the tribe of Abd Al-Qais. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ wrote to Al-Ala’ ibn Al-Hadrami (governor of Bahrain) to come to him with twenty men from Abd Al-Qais. So he came to him with twenty men, headed by Abdullah ibn Auf Al-Ashja. Al-Ala’ left Al-Mundhir ibn Sawa in charge of Bahrain. The delegation complained about Al-Ala’ ibn Al-Hadrami, so the Messenger of Allah ﷺ dismissed him and appointed Abaan ibn Sa’id ibn Al-As, saying to him: “Treat Abd al-Qais well and honor their leaders.”[10]

In the caliphate of Umar ibn Al-Khattab, Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas who was one of the 10 promised Jannah in this life was appointed as the governor of Kufa after Al-Mugheerah ibn Shu’bah. Kufa as mentioned was a province whose inhabitants were known for making unjustified complaints against their governors. True to form some of the influentials in Kufa complained against Sa’d. Although these were unsubstantiated claims Umar still removed Sa’d in order to prevent further fitnah (discord) occurring. Umar said to Sa’d:

لولا الاحتياط لكان سبيلهم بينا ثم قال: من خليفتك يا سعد على الكوفه؟ قال: عبد الله ابن عبد اللَّه بن عتبان، فأقره واستعمله

“Were it not for the need for caution, the way to deal with them would be clear.” Then he said: “Who is your successor, Sa’d, in Kufa?” He said: “Abdullah ibn Abdullah ibn Utban.” So he confirmed him and appointed him.[11]

Al-Sallabi explains Umar’s words, “Were it not for the need for caution, the way to deal with them would be clear” means that they were ignorant wrongdoers, and it was obvious that Sa’d was innocent of what they attributed to him, but caution for the sake of the ummah necessitated warding off fitnah and nipping it in the bud, before it got any worse and led to trouble, division and maybe fighting. If the accused person was innocent of what was attributed to~ then nothing would harm him once he had been proven innocent of ·the accusations against him. They understood governorship as a burden, not an opportunity; it was a duty for which they hoped for reward from Allah. Being appointed in charge of any of the Muslims’ affairs is a kind of righteous deed for the one who fears Allah and seeks His pleasure and the Hereafter. If this deed becomes a source of fitnah, wisdom dictates that one should not continue in it, as was the case here. This is what Umar did when he relieved Sa’d of his post and appointed his deputy who was trusted by Sa’d. Umar kept Sa’d in Madeenah and approved of the man whom Sa’d nominated to succeed him in Kufah. Thus Sa’d became one of ‘Umar’s consultants in Madeenah.”[12]

Provincial Elections

The caliph in origin has the executive power to appoint and remove all government officials including the governors. This is derived from the actions of the Prophet ﷺ in Medina in his capacity as a ruler-prophet. As discussed above this should be conducted through shura which could be via his advisors (wazirs) or the caliph can seek shura from the people of the province giving them the power to make the decision. We can see both types of scenarios – appointment and election – in the time of the Prophet ﷺ, Rightly Guided Caliphs and the Umayyads.

Mapping shura of the province to modern times means the caliph will allow the people of a particular province or emirate to elect their governor and then ratify the result. He does however maintain the executive power not to ratify the result and order new elections if there were irregulates or election fraud. Such an action would be conducted via the Supreme Court (Mahkmat Al-Mazalim). This provides a counter-balance against potential corruption by the governors and mayors of a province who due to having a local powerbase are susceptible to abusing their position with the electorate in order to hold on to power.

Notes

[1] Holy Qur’an, Surah Al-Shura, ayah 38

[2] Judge Hussein bin Mohammed Al Mahdi – Member of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Yemen, The book of Shura in Islamic Law, 2009, https://shamela.ws/book/26217/25

[3] Al-Zamakhshari (d.1143), Al-Kashaf, https://tafsir.app/kashaf/3/159

[4] Holy Qur’an, Surah Ali-‘Imran, ayah 159

[5] Judge Hussein bin Mohammed Al Mahdi – Member of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Yemen, The book of Shura in Islamic Law, 2009, https://shamela.ws/book/26217/91

[6] Judge Hussein bin Mohammed Al Mahdi – Member of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Yemen, The book of Shura in Islamic Law, 2009, https://shamela.ws/book/26217/92#p1

[7] Akram Al-Umari, ‘The Era of the Rightly-Guided Caliphate: An Attempt to Criticize the Historical Narrative According to the Methodology of the Modernists,’ https://shamela.ws/book/11439/115#p1

[8] Dr Ali Muhammad As-Sallabi, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, his life and times,’ International Islamic Publishing House, volume 2, p.53

[9] Abdul-Qadeem Zallum, ‘The Ruling System in Islam,’ translation of Nizam ul-Hukm fil Islam, Khilafah Publications, Fifth Edition, p.243

[10] Ibn Sa’d, Al-Tabaqat https://shamela.ws/book/1686/1412#p1

[11] Tabari, https://shamela.ws/book/9783/2013#p1

[12] Al-Sallabi, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, his life and times,’ vol.2, p.89