Now this is a question, in fact, this is a reflection on our organization here, which is responsible for this loudspeaker system, etc. This is what they call public address system. The ladies once before complained, not only once but a few times before, that sometimes the connections are wired, cables are not well guarded, some child sometimes breaks this connection or it accidentally is broken by someone else as well, so that half way during the prayer they are left without any voice, no indication is then reaching them about what the imam is doing.
And that is what happened yesterday during the Asar prayer. The lady writes that during the third rakat perhaps the connection was broken and the ladies kept waiting for about seven minutes until they were told that the prayer is over. The question perhaps is that how such worshippers who find themselves in this confusion would discharge and would perform their prayer when the connection is broken? And what about those who kept sitting and then got up in confusion, how should they have acted rightly?
The answer to this question is that even if they made certain mistakes and behaved variously, their prayers would be accepted by Allah, they do not have to repeat the prayers, because the prayers of the followers are stamped by the prayer of the imam. If the imam’s prayer is complete and innocently, without any willful part played by the worshipper, he cannot follow the imam entirely, his shortcomings would be fulfilled by Allah’s grace and they don’t have to bother much about it. That is the general principle which I understand. The second part is, what is the right thing to do? The right thing to do is to wait for a reasonable time and then start completing the prayer on your own.
Because normally we know that there is a certain time for each rakaat, if exceptionally long time has passed, then the followers should start finishing their own prayer in a normal manner. But they should wait for enough time so that if the prayer is finished, people should start talking and a sort of noise should begin to reach them, or maybe someone goes and announces it. So this is exactly what happened with these ladies. They were in the third rakaat, and at the third rakaat, it was discovered that the prayer is over. In that case, some might have said their As-Salaam-Alaikum there and then, and this is the confusing fact, whether they have to repeat their prayer or not. This is a situation which has no parable in recorded history. It has not reached us.
So personally I intend to believe that the rakaat should be fulfilled to the number. Even if they have said As-Salaam-Alaikum, they should say a single rakaat afterwards and add a Sajda Sahab, and that would complete their prayer. This is my personal inclination. But a full verdict can only be given after consultation and after finding out if there are definitely recorded events of similar nature, and what was the verdict of Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam himself.
