Returning to the Qur'aanic Verses directly addressed to believers, Verse 58:12, as translated, reads as, 'O you who believe! When you seek a private audience with the Rasool, precede it with payment of a mandatory tax. Doing this is good for you and purifying! Then, if you cannot afford it, Allah is indeed Forgiving, Merciful!'
By the time this Verse was revealed, the Rasool had already become a ruler over a large chunk of populace. It was no longer practical for everyone to have private audiences with the Rasool. So, by way of a needed restriction, and also as a source of necessary income for the nascent Islamic State, this tax was imposed. But, access to the Ruler was available to the poor who could not afford the tax.
This Verse was specifically meant for the Rasool while he was the Ruler living on this earth. Rulers now have their own protocol of security and accessibility. The Verse, however, cannot be considered as abrogated on that account. It informs us that even when there was a need for a restriction, the Rasool was still accessible to the poor, even after becoming a Ruler!
Mohammad Shafi
7th December 2021.