The four Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) hired by the Kano State government to prosecute Sheikh Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara over alleged blasphemy and incitement, have no jurisdiction to appear before the Upper Sharia Court, counsel to the cleric has said.
The cleric was arraigned before the court, presided by Justice Abdullahi Sarki Yola, on July 16 for the alleged offences through a First Information Report (FIR).
The counsel, Barrister Saleh Muhammad Bakaro, at the resumed sitting on Wednesday told the court that SANs have no jurisdiction to appear before an Upper Shari’a court, citing “Section 3, 4,5, and 6 (3) privileges and functions rules Legal rights of SAN,” he said.
Bakaro also prayed the court not to allow fresh charges to be read to the defendant, adding that under Islamic law a charge cannot be changed after a suspect has been arraigned in line with sections 2, 108 and 126 (a) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2019.”
Kano State Government has engaged the services of four SANs to prosecute Abduljabbar.
Earlier, the lead prosecution counsel, Suraj Sa’eda, SAN, urged the court to terminate the first FIR and admit a new charge by the state government, dated August 13.
Sa’eda said that a charge must be read and a plea taken before any other objection, according to section 390 (2) of Kano State Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2019.
The court then fixed September 2 for the ruling in the application for re-arraignment of the cleric and also ordered that the defendant be remanded in a correctional centre, pending ruling.
