Question
How should the estate of the deceased be distributed if his wife is pregnant? Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallahu anhu) said: "During the Last of Ages (Aakhiruz zamaan) will emerge such people who will have a derogatory nickname. They will be called „Ar-Raafifhah‟. They will falsely claim to be our partisans (shiah) whilst they will not be our partisans. The sign of that is that they will vilify Abu Bakr and Umar. Wherever you find them, kill them, for verily, they are Mushrikoon." (Al-Ajurri‟s Ash-Shareeah)
Answer
When the wife of the mayyit is pregnant, it is advisable to postpone distribution of the estate until the birth of the child so as to ascertain its sex. The child may also be stillborn, hence it will not be an heir.
Sometimes twins, triplets or quadruplets may be born.
If the estate is divided prior to the birth of the unborn child/ children, the division will not be valid. A redistribution will have to be effected. It is, therefore, best to delay the distribution until the child/children have been born. However, if the heirs decide on immediate distribution, the unborn should be assumed a male and the share of one male should be held in trust.
When the child is born a male, the distribution already effected will remain valid. If the child is a female, the distribution will be correctly rearranged.
MISTAKEN NAME
In Vol.27 No.3 of The Majlis the following question appeared:
- Source
- themajlis.co.za
- Published in
- The Majlis Vol 27 No 04
- PDF page
- 4
Verbatim verified against the source PDF
Appears under SHIA FRAUDS. This heading is the nearest headline at or before the page and is approximate. Do not cite it alone.