Mumbai: Fawzan, a class 12 student, suffered severe injuries to his brain and kidney in an accident, which also left half of his body paralysed. Had zakat funds collected online not reached him, treatment would have been an uphill task for his father, a tailor.

Internet's Impact

The internet has positively changed the way Muslims donate Zakat, a practice in Islam that mandates every believer to pay 2.5% of wealth, including gold and silver, during Ramadan. Traditionally, the amount was donated to needy, enslaved or indebted people known to the donor. With the emergence of online platforms likeindiazakat.com, Muslims are opting to donate across boundaries.

Thanks to the evolution, Fawzan’s father managed to raise Rs 5 lakh on indiazakat.com by Friday evening. When paying zakat online, Muslims can ascertain the amount through the calculator provided on these websites and pay instantly through internet banking or similar modes. Multiple such initiatives have started to gain traction.

About Indiazakat.com

Indiazakat.com was launched five years ago by Mumbai-based Association for Muslim Professionals (AMP). The website has collected Rs 23.82 crores through 79,869 donations and served for 7,664 causes across the country in five years.

AMP founder Amir Edresy said, “Through online mediums, people can easily choose for the cause they want to donate. Donors would like to pay for a child’s educational fees, thinking that the kid would get educated and give back to society.”

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which helps refugees, displaced people and stateless people, also accepts zakat through the Refugee Zakat Fund launched on its website.

“Zakat can make a difference in the lives of vulnerable displaced families in hard-to-reach areas around the world,” said the UNHCR.

It guarantees that 100% of the charity reaches those in need. Ashfaq Kazi, the mufti at Juma Masjid located near the Crawford Market, said, “Ideally, zakat is to be paid to needy relatives or neighbours. However, if people think that an unknown person living far away needs money, zakat can be paid to them as well.”

There is no conflict between the traditional and online mediums until the cause is met, Kazi added. Navi Mumbai resident Firdous Ansari has shifted to paying zakat online from Ramzan that fell during Covid. “Such e-platforms have verified causes where the beneficiaries are registered with KYC. Therefore, we are assured that our money is not wasted,” Ansari said.