Kano government sues Islamic cleric over ‘blasphemy, incitement’

The Kano state government has charged Abduljabbar Nasiru-Kabara, an Islamic cleric, to court over allegations of blasphemy and incitement.

Nasiru-Kabara, said to be a factional leader of the Qadiriyya sect in Kano, is reportedly known for controversial religious commentaries.

On February 4, 2021, the Kano government had issued an order banning the cleric over allegations that his sermons are “incendiary”.

The state also announced the immediate closure of all schools run by the cleric, pending investigation by security agencies.

Days after, Nasiru-Kabara had filed a notice filed before a federal high court in Kano against the state, stating that the actions of the government constituted a breach of his fundamental human right to life, conscience and religion.

In a statement on Friday by Muhammad Garba, Kano commissioner for information, the state said the decision to sue the preacher was taken following information received from the police on the cleric’s activities.

According to Garba, the preacher was arraigned before an upper sharia court on Friday, where the case was brought up for mention.

“Sheikh Abduljabbar Nasiru Kabara, the Kano-based Islamic cleric, famous for his controversial religious commentaries and statements that are regarded as statements mortifying the companions and sacrilegious to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) has been charged to court for blasphemy,” the statement reads.

“The development followed the receipt of the First Information Report from the police by the Office of the Attorney General and commissioner for justice which prepared charges against the cleric.

“Abduljabbar was subsequently arraigned on Friday, July 16, before an Upper Sharia Court Judge, Kofar Kudu, Alkali Ibrahim Sarki Yola, where the charges that included blasphemy, incitement, and sundry offences were mentioned.

“After the court sitting, it adjourned the case to July 28, while the scholar would remain under police custody until Monday when he would be sent to prison till the adjourned date.”