On July 11, 2009, the liberal Iranian website www.khandaniha.eu published a fatwa by Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, the most senior contemporary Shi’ite cleric. The fatwa was issued in response to a series of queries submitted to him by Iranian intellectual and cleric Mohsen Kadivar, pertaining to the legitimacy of the current Iranian government.
The following are excerpts from the fatwa: [1]
Query: “What is the ruling regarding holders of government positions, whom shari’a law requires to act justly, honestly, and wisely… if they [do not fulfill] these requirements to any degree, but behave in a manner diametrically opposed to them?”
Reply: “If none of the requirements mentioned in this query are met, this automatically, and without any need for impeachment, brings about the de facto collapse of the velayat [the 'jurisprudent,' meaning Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei] and of the government that is in charge of administering social affairs [i.e. the government of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad] – and renders null and void all decrees issued by those who hold government positions…
“In the event of a breach of any article of the contract between the two sides – namely [the contract] between the position holder and the people, who appointed him – the people may remove the position holder from his post.”
Query: “What is the religious duty of the people if these position holders insist on acting in ways that contravene the religious directive of ‘commanding good and prohibiting evil?’”
