Ahlulbayt TV Khums Scandal? - Using Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani with out his permission

I am here to really investigate this matter and create awareness amongst the Shia Ummah. Frankly I live in a large community with many centers and the issue of Khums ijaza is a huge farce. Virtually anyone and everyone related to a Islamic Center, organization, TV station, etc. is out collecting Khums without proper paper work in the name of various Maraja3. Arguably the most well-known is His Eminence, Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani . This is not to say we should not pay Khums or to speak out against the idea but to ensure that when we pay Khums we do it in line with the guidelines set out by the offices of the Maraja3 who we may not always be in contact with.

Now im not here to bash AhlulBayt TV but to be very academic about the channel and its funding from Khums money. The reason I say this is because I have been in contact with tens of people on the inside and the outside of the channel and after consistently asking to proper verification of Khums Ijaza from Sayyid al-Sistani I began to do research and ask around. My conclusions are below and Allah [swt] and his deputy are my witness that my aim is not to create fitna or problems but awareness surrounding Khums and who is eligible to collect it and spend it.

I hope AhlulBayt TV speaks out clearly about this matter and not bungle it like the banning of Sayyid Ammar Nakshawani from the channel, who I asked personally and he confirmed to me that he is banned from the channel for what I would consider to be very immature reasons. Thats another topic for another day.

I will present some information and give some conclusions. Each person can be the judge and come to a reasonable conclusion.
----

First let me say that this is a months long investigation after speaking to many scholars, intellectuals, activists and other persons of interest. This is a serious matter and should be taken as such.

We have a responsibility to the Imam (atfs) and to his general representatives, the Marjaeya, to promote proper teachings and we should not be afraid to discuss matters openly in a courteous and academic manner.

Our criteria for proper teachings and direction, in the time of occultation, are our verified respected Maraje3. They are the trust of our beloved 12th Imam (atfs) in our hands. May Allah (swt) give us the inspiration to fulfill our trust, and may the Imam's re-appearance be soon.

Last month, Grand Ayatollah Sayed Ali Al-Sistani was personally asked from a well trusted individual about whether he has given Ahlulbayt TV any moral support or ijaza (permission) for collecting and using Khums money. He responded that he has not given them permission to collect Khums or to use it. He and his son were specifically asked about the reason for not supporting the channel. They mentioned that we are not aware of the authenticity of the content of the channel, and therefore cannot support it at this time.

A call was also made to Grand Ayatollah Sayed Ali Al-Sistani's office in Qum, Islamic Republic or Iran, and upon speaking to Sayed Jawad al-Shahristani, the representative there, he personally denied giving AhlulBayt TV permission to collect or use Khums. He was also quite angry at the fact that they were saying they do have permission on their website. Now I mention the Qum office for a reason as you will see below and not the London office which resides in the same city as the offices of AhlulBayt TV.

As more intensive research and continuing to ask around, I learned from a brother that the word had gotten around to AhlulBayt TV that they were under scrutiny for collecting Khums money in the name of Sayyid al-Sistani. Since that was the case I collected any and all evidence from the webpage of the channel and other resources to make a case and create awareness in this matter if the information were to be pulled from the website.

Lo and behold that is what happened. In fact I was duly unimpressed that the website of the channel was edited without a proper explanation from the channel. This is seriously deceptive and i hope the channel can clarify the change. See for yourself the evidence attached of screen shots of the page (I have highlighted the areas on concern)