The Kano State Hisbah Board has declared the suspended Jigawa State Commissioner for Special Duties, Auwal Sankara, wanted for refusing to appear before the board on Monday.
The Jigawa State governor, Umar Namadi, suspended the commissioner and set up a five-member panel to investigate the allegations of adultery against him.
This is coming as the Kano Upper Shari’a Court One at Kofar Kudu will today (Tuesday) commence hearing on the criminal complaint against Sankara and one Tasleem Baba Nabegu on allegations of adultery.
The court is presided over by Ustaz Ibrahim Sarki Yola.
The Kano State Hisbah Board, last week Thursday, arrested Sankara in an uncompleted building belonging to him at Lamido Crescent in Nassarawa GRA, within Kano Metropolis with a married woman.
The Commander General of the board, Sheikh Aminu Daurawa, while addressing newsmen on Monday evening, said Sankara was granted bail on the condition that he would appear before the command whenever requested.
“However, despite being invited today, Sankara refused to comply,” Daurawa said.
He added that Sankara’s refusal to appear violated the bail conditions, adding that the Hisbah board would now search for and arrest him.
“The reason we invited him today was for reconciliation,” Daurawa explained.
“The complainant agreed to reconcile with Sankara due to his two children. We agreed to this and invited him to come for the reconciliation.
“Had he appeared today, we would not have taken him to court tomorrow. As Hisbah members, Islam is our guidance, and it encourages reconciliation. However, by all indications, he doesn’t want reconciliation, so we will proceed with legal action,” he said.
Daurawa spoke on what Hisbah personnel experienced before they got Sankara arrested.
“Even though we arrested him together with someone’s wife, she even injured five Hisbah personnel with her car while trying to escape from us.
“We have videos and evidence of all this. I called him several times today, and he confirmed that he would come. But later, he switched off his phone. Now he is wanted, and our people will arrest him wherever they see him,” Daurawa added.
Speaking after the press conference, the complainant, Nasiru Bulama, said he agreed to reconciliation because he has two male children with the woman and did not want to embarrass them.
He, however, said since Sankara refused to come for the reconciliation, they would now meet in court.
“I want justice,” Bulama said.
Bulama had lodged a direct complaint before the court, suspecting that Sankara and his wife, Tasleem, the mother of his two children, had been engaging in illicit affairs, against Islamic law.
Speaking to reporters, counsel for the complainant, Sa’idu Tudu Wada, represented by Haruna Magashi, said his client lodged a complaint urging the court to order police or any other agency to investigate Sankara, who he accused of having an illicit affair with his wife, Tasleem.
“Our client is urging the court to investigate the relationship between his wife and the defendant over the alleged commission of crime for criminal prosecution or whatsoever,” Magashi said.
On his part, counsel for Sankara, Shehu Suleiman, said his client was surprised to read on social media and electronic media that he was arrested by the Kano State Hisbah Board on allegations of having an illicit affair with Tasleem.
“It is important for journalists and the public to note that this a matter of ‘direct criminal complaint’ against our client, not a matter instituted by the Kano State Hisbah Board as per the records of the court and what we know, this is the direct criminal complaint against our client and the complainant’s wife,” Suleiman said.
The lawyer said his client was innocent and eager to appear in court to defend his name.
The court registrar, on Monday, told the parties that the case was slated for tomorrow (Tuesday), and not Monday as reported.
