Question:
In the book The Funds (Al-Amwal), page 79, starting from the seventh line from the bottom until the third line from the bottom, it says the following: "If the dead land had not previously been cultivated or inhabited for ages, or had previously been inhabited and cultivated then became ruined and turned into dead land before the Kharaj (land tax) was imposed on it, and the State had taken possession of it in a legitimate manner and then granted it as an Iqta’ (land grant) to an individual of the citizens, then these lands are subject to what applies to the revival of dead land in Kharaji land; the one who revives it—to whom it was granted—owns its usufruct (manfa’ah) and its substance (raqabah) if he is a Muslim, and he owes the tenth (‘ushr) or half of the tenth as zakat in its prescribed manner." End quote.
The question is: Is it not correct that the word should be ‘ushri instead of the underlined word Kharaji?
Answer:
- It seems that the confusion arose because you thought that the revival of dead land in Kharaji land—where Kharaj has not been previously imposed—becomes ‘Ushri land. This is not the case; rather, it becomes ‘Ushri for the Muslim, but it remains in its origin Kharaji with respect to the non-Muslim.
As for dead lands upon which Kharaj had previously been imposed, their re-revival does not strip them of their Kharaji status, whether the reclaimer is a Muslim or a non-Muslim.
It is stated in The Economic System (Al-Nizam al-Iqtisadi), pages 133-134, the following:
"Whoever revives dead land in ‘Ushri land owns its substance and its usufruct, whether he is a Muslim or a non-Muslim. The Muslim must pay the tenth (‘ushr) on it as zakat on the crops and fruits for which zakat is obligatory, if they reach the nisab. As for the non-Muslim, he must pay the Kharaj and not the ‘ushr, because he is not among the people of zakat, and because the land cannot be devoid of a duty: either ‘ushr or Kharaj.
And whoever revives dead land in Kharaji land upon which Kharaj has not previously been imposed, owns its substance and its usufruct if he is a Muslim, and its usufruct only if he is a non-Muslim. The Muslim must pay the ‘ushr on it and no Kharaj is due from him. The non-Muslim must pay the Kharaj on it, just as it was imposed on the non-Muslim inhabitants when they were confirmed upon it at the time of conquest in exchange for the Kharaj they pay for it.
And whoever revives dead land in Kharaji land upon which Kharaj had been placed before it turned into dead land, owns its usufruct only, without its substance, whether he is a Muslim or a non-Muslim. He must pay the Kharaj on it because it falls under the definition of conquered land upon which Kharaj was imposed. Therefore, the Kharaj must remain on it, whether owned by a Muslim or a non-Muslim, for all eternity." End quote.
It is also stated in The Introduction (Al-Muqaddimah) regarding the explanation of Article 133:
"(Whoever revives dead land in Kharaji land upon which Kharaj has not previously been imposed, it becomes ‘Ushri land ['subject to zakat'] if a Muslim revives it, and it becomes Kharaji land ['subject to Kharaj'] if the one who revives it is from the Ahl adh-Dhimmah (non-Muslim citizens).
And whoever revives dead land in Kharaji land upon which Kharaj had been placed before it turned into dead land, it shall be Kharaji land, whether the one who revived it is a Muslim or from the Ahl adh-Dhimmah.)" End quote.
It is stated in The Funds (Al-Amwal), page 42, when explaining ‘Ushri lands:
"(Every dead land revived by a Muslim. The Prophet ﷺ said:
مَنْ أَحْيَا أَرْضاً لَيْسَتْ لِأَحَدٍ فَهُوَ أَحَقُّ بِهَا
'Whoever revives a land that does not belong to anyone has more right to it.'
Al-Bukhari narrated it with the wording:
مَنْ أَعْمَر أرضاً ليست لأحدٍ فهو أحق
'Whoever cultivates a land that does not belong to anyone has more right to it.'
This ‘ushr remains ‘ushr and does not transform into Kharaj except in the case where a non-Muslim buys ‘Ushri land from a Muslim. In that case, he must pay the Kharaj on it and does not pay the ‘ushr; because the ‘ushr is zakat, and the non-Muslim is not among the people of zakat; because it is a charity and purification for the Muslim, and because the land cannot be devoid of a duty: ‘ushr or Kharaj.)" End quote.
Accordingly, regarding what appeared in your question: "Is it not correct that the word should be ‘ushri instead of the underlined word Kharaji?", the correct term is to remain "Kharaji". This is because the discussion is about land grants (Iqta’) within Kharaji land when it is dead land upon which Kharaj has not been previously imposed.
The paragraph you asked about appeared in this section, and a few lines before it, it says: "(As for if the grant [Iqta’] is in Kharaji land—which is any land conquered by force, such as Iraq, ash-Sham, and Egypt—then it is looked into...)", then it begins to detail. Thus, the subject is regarding land grants in Kharaji land.
This is while knowing that reviving dead land in Kharaji land or ‘Ushri land makes it ‘Ushri land if the reclaimer is a Muslim.
If the reclaimer is a non-Muslim, then Kharaji land remains Kharaji and ‘Ushri land remains ‘Ushri (in its legal classification), but he pays Kharaj for it in both cases because the ‘ushr is zakat and is not taken from a non-Muslim, and because the land must not be devoid of a duty, so Kharaj is taken from the non-Muslim for it.