The Ruling on the Prayer of One Who Does Not Master al-Fatihah and the Ruling on His Leading the Prayer

Question:
If the ma'mum joins the imam, and he does not master the recitation of al-Fatihah?

Answer:
He must learn al-Fatihah before that; its matter is great, and it is a pillar of the prayer. He must learn it. If he is unable and has not learned it, it is obligatory to say the takbir, the tahlil, and the tahmid, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded. One who is unable should praise Allah, say the tahlil, and say the takbir: Subhan Allah, Alhamdulillah, La ilaha illa Allah, Allahu Akbar, and La hawla wa la quwwata illa bi-Allah, in place of al-Fatihah if he is unable to recite it.

Question : The ma'mum joined the imam, and the imam does not master the recitation. What is the ruling on the prayer of the ma'mum behind an imam who does not master it?

Answer: As for the imam who does not master al-Fatihah, this varies. If the mispronunciation (lahn) distorts the meaning, he must be corrected. If the mispronunciation does not distort the meaning, the matter is broad in this regard. If he says "Alhamdu lillahi Rabb al-'Alamin," this does not harm. Or if he says "Al-Rahman al-Raheem" or "Al-Rahmanu al-Raheem," it does not harm. But if he mispronounces the meaning, for example, if he says "Iyyaki na'budu wa iyyaki nasta'in" (addressing a woman), he should be alerted to say "Iyyaka." He should be alerted so he corrects himself. Or if he says "An'amtu 'alayhim," he should be alerted; it is said, "An'amta." Or if he says "An'amti 'alayhim," he should be alerted. If he corrects himself, fine; otherwise, it is not permissible.

Question : And if he intentionally says "Iyyaka na'budu wa iyyaka nasta'in" intentionally?

Answer: He should be taught. If that does not help, he should be removed. The authorities in charge of the mosque should be directed to this. If it is a private mosque, he should be removed. Or the Waqf (Endowment) office—the Waqf office—should be informed, and it should be made clear to them that this imam does not master al-Fatihah.

Question : But he is a regular imam?

Answer: Even if he is a regular imam, he should be replaced with someone else. If the mispronunciation changes the meaning, the responsible parties should be alerted.

Question: ..

Answer: The responsible parties should be alerted so that they remove him.

Question: ..

Answer: May Allah guide them. If everyone stood up... whoever does not fulfill the obligatory duty should be alerted and confronted; until things are set right.