Doing Qurbani at another location.
Question:
Over the past years we have been sending our monies to India to do Qurbani. In this way we would be able to help the poor and the needy and also have our Qurbani done. Recently someone told us that this was not permissible, since the people in India celebrate their Eid-Ul-Adha and do the Qurbani one day before us in Trinidad. The person explained that since our animals are being sacrificed before we can actually perform our salaah and also before our 10th of Zul Hijja (Yawmun Nahr) it would not be proper. Please guide us accordingly.
Answer:
The guidelines of the shariah regarding this matter is that consideration be given to where the animal is and not necessarily where the person (doing the Qurbani) lives. The early Fuqaha (Jurists of Islam) have written many cases where it is permissible for a city-dweller to send his animal to the village to be sacrificed immediately after the Fajr prayer, before he has actually perfomed his Eid Salaah. This as well as other cases were all given to establish the principle that ‘with respect to sacrificing the Qurbani animals on the day/days of Qurbani, consideration would be given to where the animal is’.
Based on this it is clear that since the animal/animals for your Qurbani are usually done on the day of Eid (i.e.10th Zul Hijja) in India then these would all be valid Qurbanis and it is permissible for you to continue this practice. The same Fatawa has been given by the late Mufti Abdur Rahim Lajpuri (A.R.) when asked about a similar case. (see Fatawa-e-Rahimiyah)
And Allah knows best.
Mufti Waseem Khan