Lokacin da aka bai wa Musulmi don naɗa Khalifah shi ne dare biyu. Saboda haka babu wani Musulmi da yake halatta ya zauna fiye da dare biyu ba tare da bay'ah a wuyansa ba. Dalilin da ya sa iyakar lokacin ta zama dare biyu shi ne naɗa Khalifah wajibi ne tun daga lokacin da Khalifan da ya gabata ya mutu ko aka tsige shi. Amma an halatta a jinkirta naɗin yayin da ake aiki a kansa har tsawon dare biyu. Idan jinkirin ya wuce dare biyu kuma Musulmi ba su kafa Khalifah ba, sai a duba al'amarin. Idan Musulmi suna shagaltuwa da kafa Khalifah amma ba su iya kammala shi cikin dare biyu saboda al'amura masu yawa da ba su iya tsayayya da su ba, to zunubi zai sauka daga kansu, domin suna aiki wajen cika wajibi, kuma an tilasta musu jinkirtawa saboda ƙarfi da ya matsa musu. Annabi ﷺ ya ce:

The time limit given for Muslims to appoint a Khalifah is two nights. So no Muslim is allowed to stay for more than two nights without having a bay’ah on his neck. Making the upper limit as two nights is due to the fact that the appointment of a Khalifah is fard from the moment the previous Khalifah dies or is deposed. But it is allowed to delay the appointment while engaging in it for two nights. If the delay exceeded two nights and the Muslims did not establish a Khalifah, the matter is examined. If the Muslims were busy in establishing a Khalifah but could not complete it within two nights due to overpowering matters they couldn't resist, then the sin will drop from them because they are engaged in establishing the duty and they were forced to delay it by compelling power. The Prophet (saw) said:

Amma idan ba su shiga cikin aiwatar da wannan wajibi ba, to dukkansu za su yi zunubi har sai an nada Khalifa, sannan kawai farillar ta sauka daga kansu. Amma zunubin da suka aikata na sakaci wajen kafa Khalifa ba ya sauka daga kansu, a maimakon haka yana ci gaba da kasancewa a kansu, kuma Allah (SWT) zai hisabta su a kansa, kamar yadda Allah (SWT) yake hisabtar duk wani Musulmi a kan duk wata sabon biyayya da ya aikata lokacin da ya yi sakaci wajen aikata wani wajibi.

But if they were not engaged in performing the duty, then they will all be sinful until the Khalifah is appointed and only after that the fard will drop from them. But the sin they committed in neglecting the establishment of a Khalifah does not drop from them, it rather remains on them, and Allah (swt) will bring them to account for it the same way He (swt) brings any Muslim to account for any disobedience he commits when he neglects to perform a duty.

Dangane da hujjar tsawon lokacin dare biyu da aka ba Musulmi domin su aiwatar da wajibcin kafa Khalifa, ita ce ijma'in Sahabbai. Sahabbai (ra) sun taru a farfajiyar Banu Sa‘ida domin tattaunawa kan nada wanda zai gaji Manzon Allah ﷺ, da zarar labarin rasuwar Manzon ﷺ ya isa gare su. Suka ci gaba da tattaunawa a farfajiyar, kuma a rana ta biyu suka tara mutane a masallaci domin a yi bai'a. Wannan ya ɗauki dare biyu da kwana uku. Bugu da ƙari, lokacin da ‘Umar (ra) ya tabbatar cewa mutuwarsa tana kusa sakamakon raunin soka, sai ya damƙa al'amarin ga mutanen shawara (shura), kuma ya ba su kwana uku domin su zaɓi sabon Khalifa. Ya yi umarni cewa idan bayan kwanaki ukun an cimma yarjejeniya a kan Khalifa, to a kashe duk wanda ya ƙi amincewa bayan waɗannan kwanaki uku da aka ambata. ‘Umar (ra) ya kuma ba wa Musulmi hamsin iko su aiwatar da wannan aiki, watau su kashe mai ƙi, duk da cewa su mutanen shura ne kuma fitattun Sahabbai (ra). An bayar da wannan umarni a gaban Sahabbai (ra), kuma ba a rawaito cewa wani ya musunta ko ya nuna rashin amincewa da shi ba. Don haka ya zama ijma'in Sahabbai (ra) cewa Musulmi ba a yarda su zauna ba tare da Khalifa fiye da dare biyu da kwana uku ba, kuma ijma'in Sahabbai hujja ce ta shari'a ingantacciya (daleel) kamar Alkur'ani da Sunnar Manzon Allah ﷺ.

As for the evidence concerning the two night's time limit given to Muslims to perform the duty of establishing a Khalifah, it is the Ijma’a of the Sahabah. The Sahabah (ra) met in the courtyard of Banu Sa‘ida, to discuss the appointment of a successor to the Messenger of Allah (saw) as soon as the news of the death of the Prophet (saw) reached them. They kept discussing in the courtyard, and on the second day they gathered the people in the mosque in order to give the bay’ah. This consumed two nights and three days. In addition, when ‘Umar (ra) became certain that his death was imminent as a result of the stab wound, he entrusted the people of consultation (shura) and gave them three days to choose a new Khalifah. He recommended that if after the three days an agreement was reached about a Khalifah then the dissenter should be killed after the aforementioned three days. ‘Umar (ra) also empowered fifty Muslims to carry out this action i.e. to kill the dissenter, despite the fact they were from the people of shura and of the eminent Sahabah (ra). This order was given in the presence of the Sahabah (ra), and no one was reported to deny or disagree with it, so it becomes Ijma’a of the Sahabah (ra) that Muslims are not permitted to stay without a Khalifah for more than two nights and three days, and the Ijma’a of the Sahabah is a legitimate Shari’ah evidence (daleel) like the Qur’an and Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saw).