– As for his punishment: it is confinement, remaining in custody until the judge sells his assets and settles the debt on his behalf.

Points derived from the hadith

1. Al-wājid is the person who is able to pay what he owes; therefore, any delay on his part—or on the part of his guardian—is an act of wronging the creditor.

2. Such procrastination by a solvent debtor makes it permissible for the creditor to speak against him, saying things like, “He has wronged me and withheld my due,” and the like; it also permits the debtor’s detention until he discharges the obligatory right.

3. The hadith proves that it is forbidden for an affluent debtor, or his guardian, to withhold the creditor’s right.

4. The scholars are unanimously agreed that anyone who neglects an obligatory right incurs punishment until he fulfills it—be that a debt, a loan for use, a trust, partnership funds, or the like. If he refuses, the judge should discipline him repeatedly until the right is rendered. Shaykh al-Islām said, “This is the position of the imāms; I know of no disagreement concerning it.”

5. The Shaykh further stated: If the person liable is able to pay but procrastinates until the creditor is forced to lodge a complaint, any customary expenses the creditor incurs because of that fall upon the unjust procrastinator.

6. By contrast, the delay of an insolvent debtor does not make it lawful to impugn his honor or punish him; rather, he must be granted respite and not pursued. Allah the Exalted says, “And if the debtor is in hardship, then deferment until ease” (Q 2:280). Likewise, a debtor must not be pressed for a debt whose term has not yet fallen due.