How long is
a person allowed to delay his sunnats after salaah

Eg . After
esha if one didnt read his sunnah 

Can he read
it afterwards at about 11pm 

Will he be
sinful for delaying it? 

Answer: 

The Sunnah Salaah can be performed at any time after the Fardh Salaah as long as that particular Salaah’s time remains. However, the Sunnah Salaah should be performed immediately after the Fardh Salaah. Unnecessary delay will cause the reward of that Sunnah Salaah to be lessened compared to what a person who performs the Sunnah Salaah immediately after the Fardh Salaah would receive.

Allamah Haskafi mentions in his kitab Al Durr Al Mukhtar Vol. 2 Pg. 19:

ولو تكلم بين السنة والفرض لا يسقطها ولكن ينقص ثوابها 

“If a person talks between the Fardh and Sunnah Salaah, it will not nullify the Sunnah Salaah, rather it will lessen the reward.”

Mufti Muhammad Inaamul Haq Qaasmi (DB) writes in Namaz Ke Masa'il Ka Encyclopedia Vol. 2 Pg. 421:

سنت اور فرض کے درمیان دنیوی باتیں کرنے سے ثواب میں کمی آجاتی ہے

Talking of worldly affairs between the Fardh and Sunnah Salaah leads the short-fall of reward (in the Sunnah)

From the above-mentioned texts, we understand that even talking between the Fardh and Sunnah decreases the reward of that Sunnah; Therefore, it will not be correct to unnecessarily delay the Sunnah after the Fardh Salaah. (Fathul Qadeer Vol. 1 Pg. 439-441)

AND ALLAH TA'AALA ALONE IN HIS INFINITE KNOWLEDGE KNOWS BEST

ANSWERED BY: Mohmmad Anas Khan 

CHECKED AND APPROVED BY: Mufti Muhammed Saeed Motara Saheb D.B. 

Islamic Date:21 Rabi'uth Thaani 1441 

English Date: 21 December 2019