The Ruling on Weighing Good Deeds and Bad Deeds in Criticizing Those Who Disagree

Question:
Honorable Shaykh, it has spread among the youth today that balancing is required in criticism. They say that if you take a certain person from among the people and point out his errors, you are required to mention his virtues. They consider this a matter of cleverness and balance. Is this methodology in criticism correct? And am I required to mention the virtues when delivering criticism?

Answer:
There is a distinction here; it is not an absolute rule. If the one being criticized is from the people of the Sunnah and the community, and he is knowledgeable in some matters that are not less important than matters of creed, yes, you mention his qualities and virtues. But if the one being criticized is from the people of misguidance, deviation, and sects,
...destructive and suspicious, so it is not permissible for us to mention his good deeds, if he has any, because if we mention them, this misleads people; they will have a good opinion of this oppressor, or this innovator, or this one who deviates from the truth. Give us [a case where] he has good deeds, everyone counts them, and they accept the ideas of this misguiding person, this innovator, and this one who deviates from the truth. Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) refuted the disbelievers, the criminals, and the hypocrites, and He did not mention any of their good deeds. Likewise, the Imams of the Salaf refuted the Jahmiyyah, the Mu'tazilah, and the people of misguidance, and they did not mention any of their good deeds, because their good deeds are outweighed by misguidance, disbelief, deviation, and hypocrisy. It is not fitting that you refute a misguided person, an innovator, and a deviator, and then say, "By Allah, he is a good man, he has good deeds, and he has such and such, but they are wrong." No, your refutation of him should be stronger than his misguidance, because people trust your refutation; so you have promoted this misguided person and praised him. This opens the door for people to accept the words of the misguiders.
However, if the one being refuted is from the people of the Sunnah and the community, and he erred in some minor matters, there is no harm if, when you refute him, you say, "So-and-so erred in such and such, but he is a noble man, and a man of such and such." The errors and mistakes that occur in matters of fiqh, matters of derivation, so-and-so erred in such and such a fatwa, may Allah forgive him, and this does not detract from his status. As was the case among the jurists of the four schools of jurisprudence, they did not disparage one another. The people of the Sunnah are all protected from error, they have mistakes, but if a minor mistake occurs from one of the people of the Sunnah, we do not remain silent about it; we point it out, but with an excuse for him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: and if he exerted his effort . This is in matters of fiqh, matters of judgment between people, settling disputes, and matters of fatwa. As for matters of creed, it is not permissible for us to praise the misguiders, and those who disagree with the people of the Sunnah and the community, from the Mu'tazilah, the Jahmiyyah, the Zinadiqah, the atheists, and... suspicious people in this time.
The origin of this doubt was stated by some of the youth who wrote a thesis on it, and some of the youth rejoiced with it, and it was refuted, praise be to Allah. This thesis was refuted by Shaykh Rabee' al-Hadi, who refuted it comprehensively and explained the error in this speech and the promotion of falsehood, and explained the methodology of the Salaf in refutation, and that they refuted misguided people and did not praise them, because if they had praised them, this would have been a contradiction.