Hanafi Legal Ruling on Heretics

 

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الصلاة والسلام عليك يا سيدى يا رسول الله

In the Name of Allah, the Rahman, the Merciful

The Hanafi ruling on Zanadiqah (heretics) is that they are to be executed like apostates:

وَأَمَّا الزَّنَادِقَةُ قَالُوا لَوْ جَاءَ ‌زِنْدِيقٌ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُؤْخَذَ فَأَخْبَرَ أَنَّهُ ‌زِنْدِيقٌ وَتَابَ تُقْبَلُ تَوْبَتُهُ فَإِنْ أُخِذَ ثُمَّ تَابَ لَا تُقْبَلُ تَوْبَتُهُ وَيُقْتَلُ لِأَنَّهُمْ بَاطِنِيَّةٌ يَعْتَقِدُونَ فِي الْبَاطِنِ خِلَافَ ذَلِكَ فَيُقْتَلُ وَلَا تُؤْخَذُ مِنْهُ الْجِزْيَةُ

As for the heretics, they said that if a heretic came before he was captured and declared that he was a heretic and repented, his repentance would be accepted. But if he was captured and then repented, his repentance would not be accepted and he would be killed, because they are Batiniyyah [esotericists] who believe inwardly the opposite of that. So he would be killed and the jizyah would not be taken from him (Sharh Fath ul-Qadir, v.6, p.48)