Q. Is it allowed in Islam to claim something which is perfectly permissible by unlawful means, such as the payment of a bribe or telling a lie?
(Name and address withheld)
A. Much depends on what the thing is and how it is obtained. In some countries it is difficult to obtain even what you are entitled to and what is your right unless you pay the officials concerned. Now in such a case what you pay the official is not a bribe, but simply something to get your entitlement.
Suppose you are working in a company which allows you to get extra payment for the portion of your annual leave which you do not use, but continue in work instead. You may use only two weeks of your one month leave. Suppose that the personnel manager does not process your application for financial compensation in lieu of your extra work unless you pay him something. If you do, you are not guilty of paying a bribe, but you are simply yielding to an unfair demand. On the other hand, if you pay him so that he writes down that you have used only one week of your leave instead of two, that is a bribe. It is forbidden for you to pay and for him to take.
In the case the reader asks about, he should ask himself whether, using the means he is employing, he is getting an unfair advantage to which he is not entitled. Is he harming anyone? Is he depriving anyone of something that is due to them? Is what he wants to obtain granted by the government or individuals? If it is the government, then is it allowed under the rules and regulations? If it is, then it is appropriate. I cannot give him a clear answer unless I know more about the case, and I doubt whether he is willing to tell.
