Is it necessary for the act of declaring someone an innovator (tabdīʿ) to be done in a scientific manner, such that it is said of a person that he belongs to a specific deviant sect based on his belief in all of its innovations, or in an innovation that distinguishes it? And if he shares a particular innovation with other deviant sects, is it more appropriate to say that he holds "that innovation" without attributing him to a specific sect, such as saying that he "declares Muslims disbelievers due to a sin" instead of saying that he is a Kharijite or a Muʿtazilite? And if it is proven that a Sunni scholar stated of a person that he belongs to a specific sect, and then it becomes clear that this is incorrect, would the scholar be mistaken or unjust? And are the conditions I mentioned correct, and if so, where can I find them in books of knowledge, and if not, what is the correct approach?

Labeling people as innovators (ahl al-bid'ah) is a serious matter that should not be undertaken based on conjecture and personal whims. Not everyone who commits an innovation is considered among the people of desires and innovations. Rather, the innovation by which a man is considered among the people of desires is that which is widely known among the scholars of Sunnah for its contradiction of the Qur'an and Sunnah, such as the innovation of the Kharijites and the Rawafid (Shi'ites). Many of the Salaf and later generations fell into innovation without knowing it was an innovation. Issues of declaring people innovators (tabdi'), immoral (tafsiq), or infidels (takfir) should be left to specialized scholars, and one should instead focus on seeking beneficial knowledge. The Mu'tazilah do not consider immoral people (fussaq) to be infidels; rather, they consider them to be in an intermediate status between the two (between belief and disbelief). They claim that the immoral people of the Muslim nation will abide eternally in Hellfire, and they permit rebellion against rulers with the sword.