Putting lines in the mosque to make the rows straight
Question

                What is the ruling on putting lines of sticky tape or making straight lines with a pen so that the rows will be straight during prayer? There is always chaos in the mosque and voices are raised in protest about the imam – myself – not straightening the rows. We hope that you can tell us of the words of the scholars, especially contemporary scholars, as to whether this is permissible or forbidden, and what we should do in this case to put an end to fitnah, because I lead the prayers in a mosque where there is a group that adheres to the views of Shaykh al-Albaani and his students, that it is haraam, and some of them adhere to the view of Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen, that it is permissible. What is the fatwa of the Council of Senior Scholars on this issue?.
Praise be to Allah.The command to make the 
    rows straight was narrated in many well-known ahaadeeth, including the words 
    of the Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “Make your 
    rows straight, for straightening the rows is part of perfecting the prayer.” 
    Narrated by al-Bukhaari (723) and Muslim (433) from the hadeeth of Anas (may 
    Allaah be pleased with him). 
And he  (peace and 
    blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Either you straighten your rows or 
    Allaah will create discord among you.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (717) and 
    Muslim (436) from the hadeeth of al-Nu’maan ibn Basheer (may Allaah be 
    pleased with him). 
Some scholars are of the 
    view that it is obligatory to make the rows straight, because when the 
    Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) saw a man whose 
    chest was sticking out (from the row) he said: “Slaves of Allaah! Make your 
    rows straight or Allaah will cause discord among you.” This is a warning, 
    and there is no warning except with regard to a haraam action or failure to 
    do an obligatory action. The view that it is obligatory to straighten the 
    rows is a strong view. End quote from Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen 
    (13/question no. 375). 
So the imam should tell the 
    people to straighten the rows, and he should take care of that. 
As for putting lines on the 
    mats or carpets to help make the rows straight, there is nothing wrong with 
    that, and it is not an innovation. 
The scholars of the 
    Standing Committee were asked: What is the ruling on making lines on the 
    mats or carpets in the mosque, because the qiblah is not square with the 
    building, to help organize the rows? 
They replied: There is 
    nothing wrong with that, and if they pray without a line there is nothing 
    wrong with that either, because a slight deviation from the qiblah does not 
    matter. 
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn 
    ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz and Shaykh ‘Abd al-Razzaaq ‘Afeefi. 
Fataawa al-Lajnah 
    al-Daa’imah (6/315). 
Shaykh ‘Abd al-Razzaaq 
    ‘Afeefi (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked about the ruling on drawing 
    lines in the mosques to make the rows straight. 
He replied: If the people 
    cannot make their rows straight except by means of that, there is nothing 
    wrong with that, or if the mosque was built slightly off from the qiblah and 
    the rows cannot made be straight except by means of that, there is nothing 
    wrong with it in sha Allaah. End quote from Fataawa wa Rasaa’il al-Shaykh 
    ‘Abd al-Razzaaq ‘Afeefi (p. 412). 
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may 
    Allaah have mercy on him) said: Bid’ah (innovation) means worshipping Allaah 
    in a manner other than He has prescribed. Based on this, bid’ah does not 
    have to do with matters other than worship, rather things that are 
    introduced with regard to worldly matters should be examined to see if they 
    are halaal or haraam, but it cannot be said that they are bid’ah. In 
    sharee’ah terminology, bid’ah refers to when a person worships Allaah in a 
    manner other than that which He has prescribed. As for worldly innovations, 
    although they may be called innovations in linguistic terms, they are not 
    innovations in religious terms in the sense that they cannot be ruled to be 
    haraam, halaal, obligatory or mustahabb unless there is shar’i evidence to 
    that effect. Based on that, we cannot say that the things that people invent 
    nowadays to make it easier to do acts or worship are bid’ahs even if they 
    did not exist before, such as loudspeakers. Loudspeakers did not exist at 
    the time of the Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), 
    rather they were invented recently, but they serve a religious purpose by 
    conveying to the people the prayer, recitation and khutbah of the imam. 
    Similarly in lectures they serve a useful purpose, so they are good, and 
    buying them for the mosque for this purpose is something that is prescribed 
    and for which a person will be rewarded.
 Another example is the 
    recent development of having carpets in our mosques in which there are lines 
    so that the rows may be made straight.  Even though this is something new, 
    it is a means of doing something that is prescribed in sharee’ah, so it is 
    permissible or allowed for a purpose. It is well known to the people that 
    the imams were keen to straighten the rows and they paid attention to that 
    before these lines came along, and they would face some problems, such as if 
    someone stood too far forward, they would tell him to go back, and if 
    someone stood too far back, they would tell him to come forward, and if 
    necessary to come further. That took a lot of effort. But now, praise be to 
    Allaah, the imam can say: Make your rows straight along the lines, and the 
    rows can be organized properly. This is an innovation in the sense that it 
    is something new, but it is not an innovation in shar’i terms, because it is 
    a means of achieving something that is required by sharee’ah. End quote from
    Fataawa Noor ‘ala al-Darb. 
The one who is not 
    convinced of this argument and persists in the view that it is a bid’ah to 
    put lines in the mosque should explain his view to the imam, by way of 
    offering sincere advice, then he should refrain from stirring up disputes in 
    the mosque, because if the imam has put lines in the mosque, he is following 
    an acceptable opinion, so there is no room for denouncing him, rather this 
    is the correct view as stated above. 
And Allaah knows best.