Refuting Those Who Criticize 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) for Appointing His Relatives

Question : Regarding those who criticized the Commander of the Faithful, 'Uthman ibn 'Affan, for appointing people like 'Abdullah ibn al-Saffa, Abu [something] from the milk kin, and others from Banu Umayyah, how do we respond to them?

Answer : We respond to them by saying that this accusation originates from the Rafidah. Otherwise, the Commander of the Faithful, 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him), is undoubtedly a rightly guided Caliph who saw that this was the best and most unifying course for the Muslim community, so he did it. The strongest thing we can say about it is that he exercised independent legal reasoning and made a mistake. As for accusing him of favoritism, he is one of the rightly guided Caliphs about whom the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) testified that they would enter Paradise. He was the one who equipped the Army of Hardship, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [The language is unclear]. But the Rafidah cling to everything and criticize 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) in such matters.