Business and Dealings

Q: I am currently working as a Junior doctor in hospital and I am due to apply for a speciality career in General Practice (GP)/Family Medicine Inshallah. As a doctor is it permissible for me to prescribe birth controlling/contraceptive pills and other such artificial birth controlling methods, especially when in the west majority of its use is by unmarried women fuelling their desire for zina (as I am sure you are aware). I have seen on countless occasions during my GP placements where single unmarried women have come to see the GP and asked for the re-supply of their contraceptive pills as they have ran out and they have not been able to have "Safe Sex!!" with their boyfriend and have had to take the "morning after pill" each time they have had intercourse, just to be on the safe side. As I am planning on applying for this training post, is this permissible in the light of Islam?

Q: What is Mufti Sahib's view with regards to boycotting? I understand that turning to Allah through Salaah and duaa is more important but I wanted to know should we also boycott Israeli products and stores that support Israel? What about boycotting other countries that are oppressing Muslims eg. USA, China?

Q: In our country, many shopkeepers do business using third party cheques. The customer comes with a cheque on his name issued by his employer or any other company. He comes to the shopkeeper to cash the cheque. The shopkeeper agrees to cash the cheque on condition that he buys 20% of the value of the cheque worth of goods from his shop. For example, the customer brings a cheque worth R5000. The shopkeeper agrees to cash the cheque on condition that he buys R1000 worth of goods from his shop. In lieu of the R5000 cheque, the shopkeeper will give him R4000 cash and R1000 worth of goods. The benefit the shopkeeper gets from this transaction is the profit he makes in selling the R1000 worth of goods. Thereafter, the shopkeeper will recover the R5000 by cashing the cheque in his bank (he has a prior agreement with his bank to cash third party cheques).

1. Would such a transaction be permissible?

2. Some shopkeepers have resorted to cashing the cheques in the following manner: The customer brings a R5000 cheque. The shopkeeper sells him a pen for R1000 and gives him R4000 cash. So in lieu of the R5000 cheque, he gives him R4000 and a pen worth R5. Is this permissible?

3. Can the shopkeeper charge a fixed service charge for each cheque bearing in mind that he has to spend his time and effort to go to the bank and deposit the cheque?

4. Such a business is risky due to the possibility of the cheques bouncing and therefore, the shopkeeper normally puts a higher mark up on his goods than the prevailing retail price in the market. For zakaat purposes, what price will the shopkeeper base his calculations on; his selling price or the prevailing price in the market?

Q: I would like to know whether money earned through playing football, cricket, rugby, tennis and other sports will be halaal or haraam?

Q: I am an owner of a property which I lease or rent out. Can I charge a penalty for late payments of rental e.g. R100 for every day late?

Q: Is it in order to lend money to someone for example I say I will lend you R100 and you pay me back R150.

Q: I work as a designer. Sometimes, I am asked to design an invitation card for a beach party, birthday party, party at a club, etc. Can I accept these jobs?

Q: Is bank interest in India acceptable for a Muslim?

Q: I want to know about doing a course by showing fake experience certificate. I want to do a welding course, but for that you must have 3 years of welding field experience. But I am not in the welding field now. I work in a different field and if I go to a welding related job, then I can't get the salary I am getting now. It will be decreased to the salary of a freshman. Now I have 12000 per month salary, and in the welding job I wil get only 7-8 thousand. Can I show a fake experience certificate to the institute for this course? Will my salary be halaal?

Q: I want to purchase the new car from the bank. The price of the car is (lets say 500,000 Rs) in one shop and 550,000 Rs in other shop and from the bank it is 600,000. Each of them has different value based on the profit they take from the buyer. (Basis that every one has the right to get the maximum benefit based on the investment). Please guide me. Can I take the car from the bank?