Election as Khalifa (Hazrat Mulseh-e-Maud’s (ra) Narration)
Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud (ra) has explained the events after the martyrdom of Hazrat Uthman (ra) in the following manner:
“When Hazrat Uthman (ra) was martyred, the rebels looted the treasury and announced that whosoever challenged them would be put to death. People were not permitted to congregate anywhere (people were not allowed to gather in groups and they had imposed a restriction similar to Section 144 that is imposed these days) and Medina was under complete siege, with no one allowed to leave, (or similar to the curfews that are imposed nowadays) to the extent that Hazrat Ali (ra) – whom the rebels claimed to love – was prevented from leaving, all the while the rebels ransacked Medina.
“On the other hand, the stone-heartedness of the rebels was such that they did not stop at having murdered a pious individual such as Hazrat Uthman (ra) – whom the Holy Prophet (sa) greatly praised – rather, they went even further and for three or four days, they prevented the body of Hazrat Uthman (ra) from being buried. Eventually, some companions went out at night and buried him secretly. Alongside Hazrat Uthman (ra), some servants were also martyred. They too were prevented from being buried and their corpses were fed to the dogs.
“Having perpetrated this act against Hazrat Uthman (ra) and his servants, the rebels granted respite to the people of Medina as they did not have any dispute with them. At this time, the Companions (ra) began to leave Medina. For five days, Medina remained without a ruler. The rebels wished to appoint a Khalifa of their choosing so that he would carry out their demands. However, no one from among the Companions (ra) of the Holy Prophet (sa) could ever imagine becoming the appointed Khalifa of those who had murdered Hazrat Uthman (ra).
“The rebels went to Hazrat Ali (ra), Talha (ra) and Zubair (ra) in turn and asked them to become the Khalifa, but they all refused. After hearing their refusal, the rebels knew that whilst these three individuals were alive, the Muslims would never accept a Khalifa who was not from among them, therefore they decided to resort to coercion in this matter as well. They thought that if a Khalifa was not appointed soon, they would face a great storm of opposition throughout the Islamic world. They announced that it would be wise to choose a Khalifa within two days, otherwise they would kill Ali (ra), Talha (ra), Zubair (ra) and all other prominent persons. At this, the people of Medina became fearful that the people who killed Hazrat Uthman (ra) would leave no stone unturned in their mistreatment of their families and children. They went to Hazrat Ali (ra) and pleaded with him to become the Khalifa. He refused and said, ‘If I become the Khalifa, everyone will assume that I had Uthman (ra) killed and I cannot bear such a burden.’ Hazrat Talha (ra) and Hazrat Zubair (ra) also gave the same response. Whoever from among the Companions (ra) was asked to become the Khalifa, refused.
“Ultimately, everyone went to Hazrat Ali (ra) again and said that he ought to take up this burden. Eventually he agreed on the condition that everyone should gather in the mosque and accept him. Thus, the people gathered in the mosque and pledged allegiance to Hazrat Ali (ra). Some, however, refused to accept any Khalifa until those who killed Hazrat Uthman (ra) were punished, while others, albeit very few in number, said that a Khalifa should not be chosen until the opinion of the people outside of Medina was ascertained. Hazrat Ali (ra) accepted the proposal to become the Khalifa in such circumstances, but the events unfolded just as he had feared and people throughout the Islamic world began to allege that Hazrat Uthman (ra) had been murdered on the order of Hazrat Ali (ra).”
Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud (ra) writes:
“If we put all of Hazrat Ali’s (ra) attributes and qualities to one side, in my opinion, for him to accept the office of Khilafat in such precarious times was an extremely brave and courageous step and is worthy of immense praise and admiration. For the sake of Islam, he did not care at all about himself nor his honour and instead took upon himself a burden of such magnitude.”
(Waqi‘at Khilafat Alwi, Anwar al-Ulum, Vol. 4, pp. 635-637)
Then, with regard to the incidents following the martyrdom of Hazrat Uthman (ra), Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud (ra) states at another instance:
“For about a day or two [after Hazrat Uthman’s (ra) martyrdom] pillaging and looting was rampant; however, when the rebels’ emotions subsided, they began worrying about their fates and were fearful for what would happen next. Hence, some thought that since Hazrat Muawiyah (ra) was a great man, he would surely seek retribution [for the martyrdom of Hazrat Uthman (ra)].
“Hence, they set out towards Syria and upon reaching there, they began lamenting over the martyrdom of Hazrat Uthman (ra) and the fact that no one was seeking retribution for it. Other rebels ran towards Mecca and met with Hazrat Zubair (ra) and Hazrat Aisha (ra) and said, ‘How grave it is that the Khalifa of Islam was martyred, yet the Muslims remain silent.’ Then there were others who ran towards Hazrat Ali (ra) and said, ‘This is a time of great adversity and we fear that the Islamic rule may collapse. Therefore accept our pledge of allegiance so that people’s fear may dissipate and peace and security may be established.’
“The Companions (ra) who were present in Medina also unanimously advised that it was best for Hazrat Ali (ra) to take on this responsibility [of Khilafat] for it would prove to be a source of great blessings and attaining the pleasure of God. Seeing as he was being compelled from all sides – though he refused many times – he finally conceded and accepted this responsibility, after which he allowed others to pledge allegiance to him. There is no doubt in the fact that this decision made by Hazrat Ali (ra) was full of wisdom; had he not taken bai‘at from the Muslims, then even more harm would have come to Islam than that which befell it as a result of the war between him and Hazrat Muawiyah (ra).”
(Anwar al-Khilafah, Anwar al-Ulum, Vol. 3, pp. 197-198)