On Thursday, a retiree named Sani Yakubu took his wife’s grandmother, Hajiya Fatima, to a Shari’a court in Rigasa, Kaduna, for preventing his wife from going back to his home.

In December 2024, over two months after giving birth, the plaintiff informed the court that his wife, Sumayya Sani, had left their marital residence. “My wife informed me that she could not stay with me any longer and that she was going to see some of her family before returning home.” She then suggested that I draft a letter of divorce.

I went to her family’s house the next day when she failed to return home that day, and her grandma asked that I give her a divorce letter,” he stated.

He asked the court to step in and force Fatima to let his wife go back to her married residence. The defendant informed the court that she would not permit her granddaughter to go back to the complainant because he neglected to feed her and kill a ram after she gave birth to a child. However, Yakubu disputed that he did not feed his wife, but he did consent to refrain from killing a ram after she gave birth because of financial limitations. The wife, who was also in court, responded in the positive when asked whether what her grandma had stated was accurate, stating that her husband was financially well but just refused to support her.

“My grandmother backed me in my decision to not go back to him. She was the one who insisted that I wed him, even though I did not initially love him.
She stated, “He would always claim he did not have money when I begged for it, but he would give it to his girlfriend, insisting he was getting married to someone else.”

Malam Muhammad Adamu, the judge, ruled that Sumayya’s failure to kill a ram for the child was not a valid basis for divorce and ordered her to return to her married residence.

He gave the plaintiff instructions to keep trying to convince his wife by treating her and the child properly until she went back to her married residence.