What is the ruling on congregational prayer for a traveler?

The questioner : What is the ruling on praying in congregation while hearing the call of a traveler? I mean, he...

The Shaykh : As we firmly believe, the concept of a traveler is that the Friday prayer is not obligatory upon him. Therefore, if the Friday prayer is certainly more emphatic in its obligation than the congregational prayer, and its obligation is lifted from the traveler, then a fortiori, the obligation of the congregational prayer is lifted from him. However, there is another obligation for this traveler: if he is with a group of travelers or with a group of residents and the prayer is established, then in this case he must pray in congregation. This is because it is reported in Sahih al-Bukhari that he (peace and blessings be upon him) said to Malik ibn al-Huwayrith: So he ordered them to pray in congregation, a congregation specific to these travelers. This is the answer.