What is the reason for the difference in the rulings of Qisas (retaliation) in His —Exalted be He— saying: "the free for the free, and the slave for the slave, and the female for the female," and the Hadith: "A believer is not killed for an disbeliever," and is human dignity not uniform?

The madhhab (definition) (school of thought) of the majority of scholars is that there is no qisas (retaliation in kind) for a Muslim killing a disbeliever, or a free person killing a slave. This is based on the Almighty's saying: {Prescribed for you is legal retribution for those murdered: the free for the free, the slave for the slave, and the female for the female} [Al-Baqarah:178], and on the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "A Muslim is not killed for a disbeliever." The Hanafis disagreed on this, except that they concurred with the majority on not killing a Muslim for a belligerent disbeliever. These differences are not due to a lack of human dignity, but rather due to a lack of equality between a Muslim and a disbeliever, and between a free person and a slave.