Ruling on Carrying Out the Fixed Punishments in Public

Question:
Is it a condition for carrying out a fixed punishment that it be done in front of the people, or can it be carried out in prison without announcement, such as flogging a drinker of intoxicants?

Answer:
The one in authority must do what is most beneficial. Allah said: [Surat al-Nur: 2] So if he does it in prison, or in the palace, or in a place visible to the people, or in any place where a group is present, the objective is achieved. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) once carried out the fixed punishment for intoxicants on a drinker of intoxicants in the house—in his house (peace and blessings be upon him)—when the matter of their flogging was presented to him to be done in the house.

The intended meaning : The one in authority should do what is most beneficial. If what is most beneficial is to display it to the people and let the people see it so that they are deterred, he does that. He chooses the thing that displays deterrence to the people in the appropriate place, and a group of Muslims attends, even if hundreds do not attend; if a group attends, that is sufficient.

Question: And if the intention is to consider the feelings of the criminal on whom the punishment is being carried out?

Answer: No, the interests of the people and the interests of the Muslim community should be considered. The one in authority should consider the interests of the Muslim community, which include the benefit of deterring falsehood and establishing the truth.
And if the one in authority sees, according to his independent legal reasoning, that it is a legal interest for this person to be given a discretionary punishment in a certain place, or a fixed punishment in a certain place, there is nothing wrong with that. This returns to his independent legal reasoning, provided it is not for personal desire, but rather for something intended by the Shari'ah.