I am Iranian Muslim. I gave zakah for years I missed online. My non-Muslim mother was able to see my bank transactions. She then called the bank and claimed it was fraud. Regretfully, I went along with her narrative and the bank gave her the money I gave in zakah (“fraud money”) which I refused to take and I asked her what she did with it. She said she paid off her debt. This happened months ago. Please advise. If I tell bank it was not fraud I fear we may get into legal trouble.
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
If the Zakat that you paid through the bank did not reach its beneficiaries, then you are not acquitted of the obligation and you are required to pay Zakat again immediately, just as you are required to repent to Allah the Almighty for delaying it for all those years.
You are also not acquitted of your obligation by spending the Zakat in paying off your mother’s debt, and it is known that Zakat is not paid to a non-Muslim. Ibn Qudaamah, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said in al-Mughni: “We do not know of any difference of opinion among the scholars regarding the fact that zakaah cannot be given to a kaafir (disbeliever). Ibn al-Mundhir said: Everyone from whom we acquired knowledge among the scholars agrees that a dhimmi (non-Muslim living under Muslim rule) cannot be given anything from the zakaah, because the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said to Mu’aadh: “Teach them that they are obliged to give zakaah, to be taken from their rich and given to their poor.” He specified that it was to be given to their poor, i.e., the poor Muslims, just as he specified that it was to be taken from their rich”. End quote.
One category is singled out from this generality: they are the ones whose hearts are to be reconciled (who are inclined towards Islam) – they are those who it is hoped will become Muslim or that they will withhold their evil from the Muslims if they are given from the zakat as Allah the Almighty says (what means): {Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy and for those employed to collect [zakah] and for bringing hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the [stranded] traveler – an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise.} [Quran 9:60]
Allah knows best.