J-K’s Grand Mufti fixes Sadaqat al-Fitr at Rs 65

SRINAGAR — Sadaqat al-Fitr, also known as Zakat al-Fitr, amount has been fixed at Rs 65 per person, Jammu and Kashmir’s Grand Mufti, Nasir-ul-lslam announced on Monday.

Talking to the news agency Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Grand Mufti said that Sadaqat al-Fitr is a duty required of every Muslim and becomes obligatory to pay it before the beginning of Eid prayer and could be given from the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.

He said the main purpose of Zakat al-Fitr is to provide the poor with a means with which they can celebrate the festival Eid al-Fitr along with the rest of the Muslims.

Mufti Nasir-ul-Islam urged people to ensure Fitr money reaches the poor and destitute before Eid. “It is better to prefer poor and destitute over Darul-Ulooms,” he said.

Quoting Hadith, he said: “Every Muslim is required to pay Zakat al-Fitr at the conclusion of the month of Ramadan as a token of thankfulness to Allah for having enabled him or her to observe the obligatory fast. Its purpose is: as a levy on the fasting person. The fasting person will be hanging between the Earth and heavens and it will not be raised up to the Divine Presence without paying the Zakat al-Fitr.”

He said that it can be given to the poor and needy but not for the construction purposes of Masjids and any other structures. “There is no harm for any person who is wealthier and wants to pay more than Rs 65 per person as fixed for this year,” he said.