Follow-up to the previous question regarding the partnership: If a man wishes to withdraw, how should he proceed if he wants to take the saved money? Does he take the money they call the bonus?

The Shaykh : All right, complete the second issue.

The questioner : Now that the ruling has been established, we ask: If a person wants to withdraw from this system as a partner, does he take the amount of his savings plus the bonus, or does he not take the bonus and leave it for the company?

The Shaykh : Yes, but after clarifying the issue, do not call it a bonus. Likewise, do not call riba interest. The answer, as you all know, is from the saying of Allah the Exalted: But as often happens with those who deposit their money in banks, some were unaware of the prohibition of dealing with banks and depositing money in them. There may be righteous and God-fearing people among them, but they were unaware of one aspect of the hadith mentioned earlier: He is a good man and wants to preserve his money, as he says, in the bank, so he does not take riba. Why? Because what is prohibited for him is eating riba. As for being eaten (i.e., his money being used to pay riba), he was unaware of that. And some do not care. In any case, both types repented to Allah and turned to Him. He withdraws his principal from the bank. The bank, as a general system and law, returns his principal plus the riba. The question that is frequently asked is: Does he take this riba or not? There are two opinions among the scholars, meaning the scholars of the present age. Some say he should leave it in the bank because this is haram, and there is no doubt whatsoever that it is haram. But the disagreement is: does he leave it in the bank or take it? This is the first point. If it is said that he takes it, does he benefit from it or not? The answer, unanimously, is that it is haram for him to benefit from it, meaning this riba. So what does he do here? What does he do? Either he leaves it in the bank, and here there is harm in directly assisting the bank and directly enriching it. So he withdraws this riba money and does not deposit it in the bank to benefit from it, nor does he give it to an employee of the bank. Rather, he takes it and spends it on public utilities. He spends it on public utilities. Public utilities means that no specific Muslim benefits from it. That is, he does not take this riba and give it to a poor person or poor people. Rather, he spends it on a public utility. Planting trees is not one of the important general Islamic public utilities. This is a matter of worldly life and expansion therein, as you heard earlier in Allah’s description of the disbelievers: So, for example, they plant trees around graves and make them green gardens. Why? So that they do not remember death and do not see the dead, the graves that indicate death and remind of death. The important point is public utilities. For example, a rough road where animals and people stumble, so it is paved. A place that needs a bridge over a river, so this bridge is built. A village that needs water brought to the people of the village, even for the animals. This is a public utility. And so these funds are spent on public utilities.

The questioner : Building a mosque.

The Shaykh : You got ahead of me. I wanted to say that it should not be spent on mosques, because mosques must be built on the fear of Allah the Mighty and Majestic and on lawful money. But I said, and I have said on some occasions, if toilets are built with these funds, toilets for the mosque, then this is considered a public utility. But the mosque where prayer is performed and worship is done, it is absolutely not permissible. So this is our answer to those who deal with banks. It is the same answer as what you asked. I hope it is clear?

The questioner : The partner.

Another questioner : It may be that a man has some taxes or duties or something similar to these, for example.

The Shaykh : No, no, no, I do not think this is correct.

Another questioner : What he pays in them.

The Shaykh : No, that is not permissible.

The questioner : And if ... in his house, paving a road from the street to his home.

The Shaykh : ... .