Recently, I came across a Facebook video made by a resident of Peshawar highlighting the issue of shortchanging in the marketplace. The video showed a fruit vendor with a cart full of apples, surrounded by four or five customers. This vendor appeared to weigh the apples correctly, but when it came time to bag them, he would discreetly drop one or two apples from each bag. His skill in deceiving customers was so polished that he effortlessly stole their hard-earned money without them noticing.
What the customers didn’t see, God did. Despite the vendor’s long beard and high ankle-length trousers giving an impression of piety and honesty, his actions told a different story.
In times of high inflation and widespread poverty, such injustice in weights and measures only worsens the plight of the poor. Unfortunately, this vendor is not an isolated case. More than half of the shopkeepers, traders, and street vendors are so blinded by greed that they routinely shortchange their customers without considering the consequences for their conscience or their afterlife. Selfishness and greed have hardened their hearts to the extent that they commit these sins without a second thought.
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The severity of cheating in weights and measures is emphasized in Islam, where we are taught honesty, justice, and a strict prohibition against deception. It's worth recalling that the people of Prophet Shoaib (AS) were punished by God for this very reason.
Why do their hands not tremble when they shortchange? These unfortunate souls fail to realize that their business will lack blessings and customer trust if they earn through dishonest means. They do not understand that ill-gotten wealth brings no true prosperity or joy. Cheating in weights and measures is essentially theft.
When a shopkeeper or trader gives a customer less than what they paid for, it is undoubtedly theft. Anything bought with such ill-gotten gains will lack blessings or satisfaction.
Despite frequent raids on these vendors and shopkeepers, weak enforcement means their shops reopen the next day, continuing their dishonest practices. When greed and dishonesty rule the heart, what is there to fear? These individuals have amassed so much ill-gotten wealth that they can easily bribe their way out of any trouble and resume their unethical practices. The government must implement strict laws to ensure that anyone caught cheating in weights and measures faces severe consequences to serve as a deterrent to others and end this exploitation of public money.
We live in an Islamic country, and if a father earns through dishonesty, his children will likely follow in his footsteps, perpetuating this cycle of corruption. As a Muslim nation, we should rigorously oppose such practices and urge others to do the same.
In conclusion, I urge everyone not to exploit the money earned by the poor through their hard work. As long as we continue to cheat and earn dishonestly, living peacefully in this society will remain a challenge. Avoiding deceit and dishonesty in trade will bring blessings to our wealth and save us from punishment in the hereafter.
