Mine Ownership in Viewpoint of Imamiyah Jurisprudents vis-à-vis Imam Khomeini's Viewpoints

Mines, including the solid, liquid and gas resources created naturally either deep inside the earth (underground) or on the surface, are important assets for economy and development in any country. Familiarity with the rules and regulations on the mines, specially mine ownership, is very important in wise management and right exploitation of mines. The difference in lands – that are the places for formation of the mines – have created conflicts and challenges in view of ownership and posed a question for the jurists: What is the criterion for ownership of mines? Imamiyah jurists maintain three viewpoints in connection with mine ownership. A number of them consider mines as the public wealth. Some say the ownership of the mine belongs to the land where it has been formed. Therefore, they argue that a mine in private land belongs to the owner of the land, a mine in public land belongs to the public and the mine in the anfal lands (lands originally belonging to Imam of the Muslims) belongs to the Imam; while renowned jurists of the past and some contemporary jurists argue that mines are instances of the anfal lands, thus they belong to the Imam of Muslims. Imam Khomeini’s opinion on mine ownership is the same as this one.