Conditions of the Caliph
There is consensus (ijma) among the scholars on the pillars (arkan) that someone must possess to take up the post of Khaleefah. However, there are differences of opinion (ikhtilaaf), on some of the other conditions (shuroot) such as being from Quraysh, a mujtahid (able to perform ijtihad) and brave. The contractual conditions must have a shar’a daleel (divine evidence) from the divine text (Qur’an and Sunnah). Imam Ghazali (1058-1111) says, “Conditions for the Imamate must be proved, and proof is either a text from the Trustee of the Law, or a reasoning about the benefit (maslaha) for which the Imamate is sought. The only text is that about descent from Quraysh. The other conditions are from necessity and needed for the purpose of the Imamate.”[1] Before discussing the opinions of the classical scholars concerning the contractual conditions of a Khaleefah, we need to understand the time period they lived in. Only then can we begin to appreciate why they emphasised certain conditions over others, and why they legitimised certain abnormal situations, such as the Khaleefah …