[bayindirh]

File permissions, inode number, dates associated with a file are all features of the files, and it's natural to be a part of a directory/file lister.

One can always create separate tools for all the extra functionality in ls, however without the file name, associating all the information would be hard, so if these properties need a file name to be meaningful, why not add it into a single tool?

It's not like ls is changing group/owner, mode, or modifying timestamps or doing filesystem dependent things. It just lists files, with a bunch of extra information, if you want.