Conditions for Qisas

**The blood guardian is entitled to Qisas with four conditions:** **1. The Killer Must be Legally Responsible (Mukallaf):** Adult and sane. There is no Qisas upon a minor, insane, mentally deficient, or sleeping person. **Evidence:** The Prophet ﷺ said: "The pen has been lifted from three: from the sleeper until he awakens, from the child until he matures, and from the insane until he regains sanity" [Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi]. This is because they do not have valid intent, or no intent at all. --- **2. The Victim Must Have Inviolable Blood:** Because Qisas was legislated to preserve blood, and one whose blood is permissible is not protected. If a Muslim kills a hostile disbeliever, an apostate before repentance, or a married adulterer - there is no Qisas upon him, nor Diyah. However, he is disciplined (ta'zir) for overstepping the ruler's authority. --- **3. Equivalence Between Killer and Killed:** Equal in freedom, religion, and slavery status. - A Muslim is not killed for a disbeliever - even if the Muslim is a slave and the disbeliever is free. The Prophet ﷺ said: "A Muslim is not killed for a disbeliever" [Bukhari]. - A free person is not killed for a slave, based on Allah's saying: "The free for the free, and the slave for the slave" [Al-Baqarah: 178]. - Beyond these, differences do not affect Qisas. The noble is killed for the lowly, the male for the female, the healthy for the insane or mentally deficient - based on the general statement: "And We ordained for them therein a life for a life" [Al-Ma'idah: 45]. --- **4. The Victim Cannot be the Killer's Descendant:** The killed cannot be the killer's child or grandchild (no matter how far down). A parent (no matter how far up) is not killed for killing their child (no matter how far down). **Evidence:** The Prophet ﷺ said: "A parent is not killed for their child" [Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah - authenticated]. However, a child IS killed for killing either parent - based on the general verse: "Prescribed for you is legal retribution for those murdered" [Al-Baqarah: 178].