The Reason of Conflict & Discord During his Caliphate
On another occasion, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud (ra) states:
“Hazrat Umar’s (ra) Khilafat was further away from the era of the Holy Prophet (sa) as compared to the Khilafat of Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra). The same was the case with Hazrat Uthman (ra) and Hazrat Ali (ra). Undoubtedly their rank was lesser than that of the Caliphs before them. However, the incidents that occurred in the time of Hazrat Uthman (ra) and Hazrat Ali (ra) were not as a result of them being lower in rank, but it was owing to the distance from the era of the Holy Prophet (sa). The reason for this is that the majority of the people present during the eras of Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) and Hazrat Umar (ra) were those who had spent time in the company of the Holy Prophet (sa). However, later on, those who had not enjoyed the company of the Holy Prophet (sa) became more influential. Thus, a person once asked Hazrat Ali (ra) the reason why the conflict and discord witnessed in his time were not witnessed in the eras of Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) and Hazrat Umar (ra)? To this, Hazrat Ali (ra) replied, ‘The fact of the matter is that the people serving under Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) and Hazrat Umar (ra) were like me and the people serving under me in this era are like you.’”
(Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya aur Hamari Zimmadarian, Anwar al-Ulum, Vol. 5, p. 95)