A man bought a piece of land and registered it ten days after the purchase. He allocated eight qirats to himself and four qirats to each of his minor children. He later built a multi-story building on the land. Twenty-two years after registering the land, the man’s children verbally and physically abused him and levelled false accusations against him. Their conduct and ingratitude amounted to a betrayal of the kindness he had shown them. As a result, he now wants to revoke the gift of land he had given them. Does he have the right to take back the land he gave them? What is the ruling of Islamic law on this matter?

If the case is as mentioned in the question, namely, that the man bought a piece of land and registered it in his and his children’s names;

- that he allocated four qirats to each of his minor children through a sales contract;

- that he allocated the land to his children while he was of sound mind and in good health;

- that the sale was concluded and took effect immediately and fulfilled all the conditions of a valid, including an offer and acceptance and a known price; and

- that he absolved his children of the obligation to pay, and the seller acknowledged receipt of the price of the land,

then this constitutes a valid sale, not a gift. The aforementioned purchase contract was also valid and effective. The transaction therefore amounted to waiving the purchase price by absolving the debtors (the man’s children) of the obligation to pay it.  

Based on the above, the transaction undertaken by the man is not considered a gift, but a valid sale. It is impermissible to revoke the sale after the transaction has fulfilled all the essential elements and valid conditions prescribed by Islamic law, especially since many years have passed since the sale was concluded.

And Allah Almighty knows best.