MASSIVE ‘QUR’BAANI’ FRAUD BY MR.SHAHEEN ISMAIL
Since the past several years, Muslims in South Africa, due to their own neglect, indifference and lackadaisical attitude towards the sacred Qur’baani obligation, have been conned and defrauded of millions of rands on the pretext of Qur’baani which was NOT executed. Thus, all those who had ‘qur’baani’ dealings with Shaheen Ismail should understand that their Qur’baani obligation was not discharged.
Massive fraud in the name of Qur’baani, has netted the Fraud millions of rands. His whole ‘qur’baani’ operation is a massive and a cruel fraudulent scam which only an atheist bereft of the slightest vestige of Imaan and shame is capable of perpetrating.
The FRAUD in the name of Qur’baani is a fraud of a different dimension, of an aggravated kind, of a type which even a Muslim crook and robber is not expected to perpetrate. To suck money from Muslims on the pretext of fulfilling their Qur’baani obligations, then without executing the obligations, to pocket the money, go on holidays, squandering huge sums of money at 5 star hotels in Turkey and elsewhere, and buying millions of rands of luxury vehicles, is the work of only a veritable Iblees in human form.
No one begrudges a Qur’baani vendor making profit. This is perfectly halaal, but to perpetrate such callous fraud in the Name of Allah Ta’ala by duping people and tricking them into believing that their Qur’baani obligations are being discharged is worse that reciting Bismillaah when devouring pork and liquor. It is blatant KUFR.
The following is the statement of Maulana Omar Desai who was a partner with Shaheen Ismail.
Facts of Qurbani regarding Shaheen Ismail (Part 1)
In the year 2022 Qurbani was done with me via Shaheen Ismail for Gift of the Needy. However, Gift of the Needy then made it clear that going forward he is going on his own as he does not want Shaheen Ismail to be involved at all with the Qurbani. He made it clear that he will deal directly with me otherwise he will go elsewhere or stop doing qurbaani.
May 2023, Gift of the Needy contacted me and renegotiated terms and conditions excluding Shaheen Ismail. Shaheen Ismail contacted me and insisted that I have to keep him on as a silent partner even though he is no longer involved with Gift of the Needy’s Qurbani project. I told him that the partnership which we concluded in Makkah had ceased and he no longer has anything to do with Gift of the Needy. In addition, he(Shaheen Ismail) to pressurize Gift of the Needy, resigned from all Gift of the Needy operations, thinking that it will force Gift of the Needy to take him back for the Qur’baani operation. However it came as a blessing for Gift of the Needy when he resigned as he was costing the organisation too much for doing absolutely nothing.
Shaheen Ismail then called me to say that even though he is not part of Gift of the Needy and even though he is not bringing in any orders in from Gift of the Needy, he is still entitled to 50 percent share of all profits of all my Qurbani operations. I refused his ridiculous suggestion, stating that he will only get a share if he brings in orders.
I explained the Shar’i Mas’alah to him that a partnership can be cancelled by any partner if any one of the partners, but he refused to agree. Things turned sour and he contacted Gift of the Needy slandering me and running by integrity into the ground. He mentioned to a few people in Durban but this back fired badly on him as everyone, from Ulama to the public started questioning that all these past 5 years up until April 2023, Moulana Omar was doing such sterling work and he (Shaheen Ismail) vouched and endorsed everything, but all of a sudden after Shaheen Ismail is not getting any commission any longer, Moulana Omar Desai is now a bad person who cannot discharge the Qurbani obligation! People saw through his thin veil.
On the 5th of May I went to Durban to discuss the Qurbani with Gift of the Needy and get to the bottom of Shaheen Ismail’s involvement with Gift of the Needy. It was then mentioned to me , with me being in shock as well as Gift of the Needy being in shock, that Shaheen Ismail went into a partnership agreement on the same Qurbani animals whereby he was a partner with Gift of the Needy and collecting 50 percent profit on all the animals which they sold and then went into a 50 percent partnership agreement with me as well on what ever orders he brings from Gift of the Needy.
He was collecting exorbitant amounts of money from both sides for the same Qurbani animals. When this came to light he told Gift of the Needy that Islamically it is proper and correct for him to benefit in this fraudulent manner.
Besides the Qurbani whereby he was collecting such huge amounts of money, he was taking upto 6 digit figures for his name being used on Gift of the Needy projects.
He is no longer involved with Gift of the Needy, and became the so-called ‘Ameer’ of ‘Islamic Awareness Centre Relief’ (IAC) in 2023 and announced publicly that he is the ‘ameer’ of IAC.
All these years that I was doing the Qurbani for IAC, Shaheen Ismail was collecting a 50 percent profit from me as well as collecting a profit on the same Qurbani animal from IAC.
During COVID 19-when I was selling food hampers to organisations, he again forced an agreement whereby he took 50 percent profit from me as well as from IAC. He mentioned to me that IAC should not know that he is involved with me. I never questioned him but could not understand why he was always being so elusive. Only this year in May 2023, I was made aware that he was collecting from myself as well as from the organisation on the same product. He had now become the ‘Ameer’ of IAC.
A certain medical Dr in PE, during COVID 19 wanted to give an amount of R10k Zakaat to Al Fida. Shaheen Ismail encouraged me to speak to the doctorr to divert the 10k Zakaat to IAC. Thinking that it would be in the best interest of the poor, I did so. After the 10k was deposited in to IAC account, Shaheen Ismail requested that food parcels be bought for distribution. I was offering this service. From the 10k Zakaat, 40 percent was to be kept back for ‘admin cost ‘, as this is what IAC keeps back from Zakaat and Lillah contributions. I insisted that this cannot be done and after considerable reluctance the entire 10k Zakaat was then utilised for the poor.
No wonder Shaheen Ismail, only having a newspaper selling ads, can afford vehicles that cost a million rand each and has about 3 or 4 such vehicles.
In 2022,whilst I was toiling ensuring that every Qurbani animal is accounted for, Shaheen Ismail whilst taking 50 percent of the profit for India Qurbani and doing nothing at all, took his entire family on a month long holiday to Turkey during the Qurbani period,staying in luxury hotels under the pretext of overseeing relief work in Turkey, using monies from charities and organisations profits to finance his trips.
Regarding the 2023 Qurbani project, which he is advertising to be done in Qurbani in India, Malawi and Syria, he claims that he will be personally supervising it. How can he personally supervise the Qurbani in 3 places at the same time? This is brazen deception and misleading the public.
About 5 years ago, whilst I was in Kolkata for medical treatment, Shaheen Ismail was also in Kolkata in a different place procuring animals for Qurbani. He called me whilst I was there and gave me a figure which he paid for cows in West Bengal.The figure he gave me was ridiculously low and for the area of West Bengal it was just not possible to have bought for that price. He insisted that he physically saw the animals and then paid. However he did not witness the animals being slaughtered. After paying for those animals he went to Northern India to ‘oversee’ the Qurbani there.
I have an establishe and systematic network in India and exceptionally strong especially in Kolkata and greater Northern India.
After intensive investigation, it was established that the person who sold those Qurbani animals to Shaheen Ismail was reputed for reselling the same animal to other unwary foreigners from South Africa and the UK, hence he could sell it so cheaply to Shaheen Ismail.
Upon my return to South Africa, as I was based in Makkah Mukaramah at that time, I told Shaheen Ismail that this whole India Qurbani is a scam and it’s impossible to sell an animal of 7 shares for around R1000.
I told my cousins at the time, viz. Moulana Nazeem Moosagie and Moulana Idris Moosagie in particular, that this Qurbani which Shaheen Ismail is doing is a fraud and I’m going to inform The Majlis about this if he don’t pull this Qurbani saga straight.
Shaheen Ismail then got together with other role players who also advertise India Qurbani and they decided to collectively increase the prices to its correct market related prices.
The following year whilst I was in Makkah Mukaramah, he approached me whilst I was sitting in the Haram Shareef and requested that I become a supplier of Qurbani animals as I have such a strong network in India.
He made it clear to me that he has taken over the organisation ‘Gift of the Needy’ and he is the face and ameer of the said organisation.
He proposed that we go into a partnership whereby he brings in orders for Qurbani animals and we go into a 50/50 partnership agreement on the profits. He made it clear that it should not be divulged to anyone that he is a partner in the Qurbani.
I didn’t question the reason behind this yet I didn’t understand why he was so secretive about it.
Be that as it may, we started the following year with the Qurbani and what ever orders for animals which he brought in, he handled the monies and I did all the ground and field work.
The 1st year of our agreement, he went to Northern India and I went to Kolkata.
We shared the profits as per what we agreed in Makkah.
The following year I went to India and did all the work. He stayed behind. When I reached India, he informed his team of my arrival and they were ready for me. I was immediately whisked to a 5 Star deluxe hotel, showered with expensive gifts, etc. This raised the red flag immediately that something is not right here.
2 days before Qurbani could start I demanded to physically go and count each and every animal and to check for Shari compliance. Excuses upon excuses were given to me preventing me from going to take head count of the animals.
When Shaheen Ismail’s team realised that they were not going to be let off the hook, they took me on a wild goose chase failing to realise that I know the area like the back of my hand. When they failed to show me the animals and give account for the number of animals that were supposed to be slaughtered, I called Shaheen Ismail from India and asked him what’s going on with his guys .
He said that they are trustworthy and I should have a good opinion about them. They duped him to say that the area in which they are working is too dangerous so they will do night slaughter. I insisted on seeing the animals first to which they failed to show me even 10 animals from the 1000 animals which they were supposed to have slaughtered.
All of a sudden the next morning I’m shown hundreds of pictures and videos of animals that have been slaughtered the previous night. I fired his entire team on the spot and up to this date (2023), they still beg me to take them on again to which they have been shown the door.
I then took over the reins completely and physically go and supervise,oversee, and account for every animal. I have my own teams of 1 supervisor and 8 slaughterers per camp and I have between 8-10 camps depending on how many I slaughter.
From that year which was 4 years ago until now, I only am hands on, Shaheen Ismail is no where near and does zero work yet still collects his 50 percent profit because he was the face of Gift of the Needy and he was bringing in orders. I honoured our agreement.
In 2021, about 4 months after the Qurbani season, I got a call from the owner of Gift of the Needy. I want to make it clear that until 2021, I was discouraged to be in contact with the owner of Gift of the Needy and vice versa. Shaheen Ismail made sure that everything had to go via him. The owner of Gift of the Needy enquired from me about an exorbitant amount of money amounting to a few hundred thousand rands that was moved from his account. Upon enquiring from Shaheen Ismail as to what and whose money was that, he was told that it belongs to Moulana Omar Desai for Qurbani. I have been paid 4 months prior and had no idea what was going on, so I told the owner of Gift of the Needy that the money is not mine and he should speak to Shaheen Ismail.
I called Shaheen Ismail and he told me that I must say that it is my money. He didn’t expect the owner of Gift of the Needy to call me directly. Gift of the Needy became very suspicious that Shaheen was using the organisation for his personal benefit above and beyond the huge amount of money that he was already receiving in royalties for being the ‘Alim’ endorsing Gift of the Needy projects.
In 2021,after the activity of Shaheen Ismail moving a few hundred thousand Rand from Gift of the Needy, Gift of the Needy then decided that he does not want to continue doing Qurbani with myself via Shaheen Ismail. He wants to take control of his organisation and wants to deal directly with the supplier, viz myself. Shaheen Ismail realised that he does not have an option anymore as Gift of the Needy was not prepared to continue with Qurbani under the current arrangement whereby Shaheen Ismail is the go between.
Shaheen Ismail then contacted me and said that Gift of the Needy wants to deal directly with me but our agreement still is in place and Gift of the Needy should not come to know that he is a silent partner with me, however Gift of the Needy suspected that Shaheen Ismail had a financial interest as well in the Qurbani. I was totally under the impression all along that Shaheen Ismail had sole partnership with me.
In 2022 Gift of the Needy was very reluctant in continuing doing Qur’baani with me via Shaheen Ismail as he was being kept in the dark all along yet he was suspecting that things are being kept away from him despite the fact that it’s his organisation and not Shaheen Ismail’s.
Last year it was touch and go as there were riots in the area and some youngsters got lynched. So I was not sure if I was going to be able to go ahead with the Qurbani. I told Shaheen that we need to take out a statement and let people know that we may not be able to do Qurbani as the situation is very volatile. But he was adamant and argued with me that we cannot take out such a statement and that we must continue advertising and collect Qurbani monies as usual and if we can’t do the Qurbani then we should give the money in charity.
I told him that I can never accept this and if the Qurbani cannot be done we have to inform the public. He said that our name is at stake if we make a public announcement of us being incapable of executing the Qurbani. It is clear that he will do anything to get public funds in the hands. Alhumdulillah! After working round the clock I got the animals in place and teams mobilised and all went well.
This year he is on his own and he does not know the area nor does he have anyone reliable to do the Qurbani besides the guys that I fired – those who outrightly conned him the previous years when he had gone there.
15 Zul Qa’dah 1444 – 5 June 2023