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Is the owner of land on which an artesian well was dug for public benefit entitled to not pay the costs of electricity consumption and pump maintenance, knowing that the state grants them privileges in return?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If the state does not specify the privileges due in exchange for the relinquishment of land, either explicitly or by custom, then the contract contains uncertainty (gharar) and ignorance (jahalah) which lead to dispute, and this is not permissible in Islamic law. The privileges must be known, just as obligating the partners to pay electricity dues which include your share is ignorance. If it is possible to agree with the state on defining the privileges in a way that negates the ignorance and makes the partners' duty known, then the situation becomes permissible in Islamic law. Otherwise, it is advisable to reconcile with the partners and seek assistance from people of knowledge and experience while maintaining leniency.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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