Zakat as right of the poor

Mentioned in the Holy Quran 88 times, Zakat is considered as one of the fundamental pillars of Islam. It is the compulsory and systematic giving of 2.5 per cent of one's wealth each year to benefit the poor. To be a Muslim, it is mandatory to pay Zakat if s/he is eligible. However, due to lack of awareness, the concept of Zakat is often misunderstood in our society. Every year we can see how some Zakat payers distribute clothes of inferior quality to the poor. Sometimes, they fall victim to stampede while collecting those alms in the name of Zakat.
The wealth of Zakat should be distributed in such a way that the receivers can bring significant changes to their lives and livelihoods. There is no way of considering Zakat as a tax, alms or donation. Rather, in the Quran, Zakat has been stated as the indisputable right of the poor and the needy people. Rich Muslims can pay their Zakat collectively instead of individually to get a much greater impact and play a vital role in poverty alleviation. It should not be distributed in the form of small cash or clothes to provide temporary relief to the poor. Rather, it should be for small business purposes, which can change one's life and livelihood. And we all know that Ramadan is the best time to pay Zakat because it significantly multiplies the divine reward of one's payment.

Abu Bokkar Siddique,
Student of Department of Marketing, University of Dhaka,
abubokkar241@gmail.com