ভূমিকা
This is the meaning which is actually intended here. If there were to be no security (in the society), the people would be unable to sleep in peace for fear of thieves. It is for the purpose of establishing and maintaining security that Islam has ordered a thief’s fingers to be severed; even if the act happens to be committed by a child, he has to be castigated in some manner, so that he desists from committing this evil act in the future.
It is due to the non-implementation of this Qur’anic ruling that an increasing number of thieves are found even in Islamic societies these days. The Imam and the Thief’s Confession A person approached Imam ‘Ali (as) and confessed that he had committed a theft. “Are you able to recite something from the Noble Qur’an?” Imam (as) asked him. “Yes, I know the chapter al-Baqarah,” replied the man.
The Imam (as) said, “I forgive you because of the chapter al-Baqarah.” Ash’ath Ibn Qais, who happened to witness this, asked the Imam (as) whether he could repeal a punishment that had been stipulated by Allah. “What do you know?
If a person confesses to his crime, an Imam has the authority to either punish him or pardon him, but if two persons testify to a person’s crime, it is not permissible to annul the punishment (and pardon him),” the Imam (as) retorted.[^3] The Bedouin’s Camel Sheikh Tawoos al-Haramain narrates: “I had been standing near Masjid al-Haram in Makkah when I witnessed a Bedouin advancing on his camel.
When he reached the mosque, he dismounted, made his camel sit down, tied its two knees and then, raising his head towards the sky, implored: “O’ Lord! I entrust unto You this camel and the load that lies upon it.” Then he entered Masjid al-Haram.