Responsibilities of Civil Servants in Islam
i. introduction
سید القوم خادم(الحدیث)
“The chief of a nation is its servant.”
Islam is a complete code of life. It guides man in all aspects of life. Islam also teaches man how a civil servant behaves and how he carries out his duties for public services. There is a complete guide available for civil servants in the light of the teachings of the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ.
ii. civil servant
A Civil Servant or Public Servant is a person employed in the public sector by a government department or agency.
iii. civil servant in islam
A Civil Servant in Islam is a publically responsible person. He has been entrusted with significant responsibilities among them the more important are to implement law and order, to dispense justice, to collect zakat and other taxes, etc.
iv. responsibilities of civil servants in islam
The responsibilities of a Civil Servant in Islam include:
1. To uphold the Islamic religion and shariah
The first duty of a civil servant is to uphold for the Islamic religion and Shariah. If anyone makes an innovation or becomes a skeptic in religious matters, he should try to correct it.
2. To dispense justice
Civil Servants must dispense justice and settle the cases in accordance with the Shariah. He should thus curb the strong and encourage the weak to seek his due right.
Hazrat Abu Bakar (رضي الله عنه) when assuming the caliphate is repeated to have said:
“In my sight, the powerful and the weak are alike and to both, I wish to render justice.”
3. To maintain law and order
He must maintain law and order in the country, so as to encourage economic activities and enable people to travel freely in the land without fear.
4. To enforce the criminal code of Islamic law
A civil servant should enforce the criminal code of the Holy Quran. So that people might live in within the hudud of Allah.
It is narrated by Anas bin Malik (Sahih Bukhari: Book-81, Volume 8, Number 764):
“The Prophet ﷺ beat a drunk with palm-leaf stalks and shoes. And Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه) gave (such a sinner) forty lashes.”
So that people remain within the hudood of Allah (سبحانه و تعالى).
5. To defend its frontiers
He must defend the frontiers of the Islamic state, so that people-Muslims and non-Muslims, might live in peace and harmony.
6. To collect zakat and other taxes
A Civil Servant must collect Zakat and other taxes without any fail as this is essential for the financial aspect of good governance.
7. To protect the weak against the strong
It is the duty of the Civil Servant to collect Zakat and Khiraaj, as required by the injunctions of the Shariah, in order to protect the weak against the strong.
Hazrat Umar (رضي الله عنه) said:
“By God, he that is weakest among you should be in my sight the strongest until I have vindicated for him his right: but him that is the strongest which I treat as weakest. Until he complies with the law”
8. To ensure rule of law
It is one of the basic duties of a Civil Servant to ensure the maintenance of rule of law.
Almighty Allah in Surah Tawba Verse:33 Says:
“He is the One Who has sent His Messenger (ﷺ) with ˹true˺ guidance and the religion of truth, making it prevail over all others, even to the dismay of the polytheists.” (Al-Quran)
9. To initiate works of public welfare
A Civil Servant should appoint honest and sincere men to principal offices of the state and to the treasury (Bayt ul Mal) in order to ensure good and effective administration and to safeguard the finances of the stated inflate public welfare projects.
10. To establish and maintain educational institutes
In Islam, education is the basic right for all people either male or female. Islam has given this responsibility to Civil Servants. Therefore, he should try to establish and maintain educational institutions.
11. To ensure price control and curb monopolistic practices
He should try to ensure price control and curb monopolistic practices. This will result in the free flow of money.
12. To enforce public morality
A Civil Servant should try his best to enforce public morality. But he should not harass the public while enforcing public morality.
13. To do amr bil maruf wa nahi anil munkar
He should give command of what is good and should prohibit what is bad.
v. responsibilities of civil servants advised by caliph Hazrat umar (رضي الله عنه)
As per Hazrat Umar Farooq (رضي الله عنه), A Civil Servant is to entertain the complaints of people and his doors should be open to all and sundry.
When Hazrat Umar (رضي الله عنه) would a governor, He (رضي الله عنه) would invariably advise the incumbent:-
“Not to make reception halls so that you are accessible to everyone, not to eat refined flour as it is not available to all citizens of the Ummah, not to wear thin cloth because this would make you easy going, and not to ride a Turkish horse because this would make you haughty.”
vi. conclusion
A civil Servant is the public servant of the people. In Islam, a Civil Servant has to answer Allah (سبحانه و تعالى) and to people, he works for. Islam has given certain responsibilities to civil servants. These responsibilities are to enforce just law, maintain law and order, and collect Zakat. Besides this, a Civil Servant should work for the welfare of the public and should protect the weak against the strong. These responsibilities are enjoined on Civil Servant as he is the servant of the nation.