But generally speaking...

But generally speaking, they must be honest, brave and knowing the rules of Sheriat concerning their duties and responsibilities. Question: How do you judge the following : Thief; One who uses witchcraft; Robber; Liar; One who commits adultery; One who commits adultery with an animal; A murderer; One who steals or uses a thing put Wakf without proper permission; A child born unlawfully; One who reveals others' shamefulness; One who tries to destroy faith; A political prisoner ?

Answer: Islamic Penal-Code is very reasonable. The following facts must be mentioned here : i. There is a difference between sin and crime. Every crime is a sin but not vice versa. ii. Sins and crimes are sometimes against God and sometimes against other people. iii. Tawba (repentance) is a recognised factor in this Code.

The important conditions of Tawba' are that: (a) He should repent to please Allah, not to avoid any material harm; (b) he should have a firm resolve not to commit that sin again, (c) if the sin is against God and can be amended, he should do so at once, (d) if the sin is against other people and can be amended, he does so at once; otherwise, he should ask pardon from the wronged party.

Thus if a man, for example, steals something and then repents (with all the conditions mentioned above, including the return of stolen thing to the owner), before the owner lodges the case against him in a Qadhi's court, there will be no case against him at all. "A man who repents from sin is like a man who never sinned". (Holy Prophet). This highest standard of justice and mercy cannot be found in any other code of law.

Now, if someone is brought before a Qadhi, without any trace of repentance, he deserves punishment to save society from his mischief. Again, the crimes, in Islamic penal Code, are of two kinds : Those whose punishment has been fixed in the Qur'an; and those whose punishment has been left to the discretion of the Qadhi. Even fixed punishments are of different grades for any given crime.

A man who kills another man, can be set free or made to pay blood-money or put in prison or put to death, according to the circumstances mentioned in the Qur'an. Now about the matters mentioned by you (only the maximum punishment is mentioned here) : Political prisoner: Political difference, in itseif is neither a sin nor a crime in Islam. An Illegitimate child, in Shia law, is not treated as a sinner. The parents are liable to punishment, but not the child.