4-The stolen thing shall have a worth. Worthless things are not catered for this crime. It has a direct relation to what Hazrat Umar bin Khattab ordered during the time of his Khilafa. Subhan Allah, what a system of Justice that was.

Let’s say if somebody stole food or something else which doesn’t have much monetary value, there is a possibility that he might have stolen it to feed his family as he doesn’t have means to feed. In this case, the Islamic law does not require to impose the punishment of cutting the hands.

5-The stolen thing value should be equal or greater to value of three Islamic Dirhams or quarter of an Islamic dinar. The value of the quarter of Islamic dinar is SR 153 today. However, I have heard that Saudi Arabia has not set this amount as a criterion to impose the punishment of cutting hands.

A Saudi friend of mine told me that the value of the amount stolen should be at least SR 80,000 to impose this punishment. I would appreciate if anyone with better knowledge can enlighten us about this.

6-The thief must be adult having a sane mind. This condition doesn’t only apply to this punishment but any other punishment of Islamic law. If a 5 years old child steals something, you can’t cut off his hands even if all the above-mentioned criteria are met. Same goes with someone who doesn’t have a sane mind.

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