A Kano State High Court, under Justice Amina Aliyu, issued a permanent injunction on Monday, prohibiting Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero from assuming the title of Emir of Kano.
The court also extended this prohibition to the deposed Emirs of Bichi, Rano, Gaya, and Karaye, following a suit brought by the Kano State government.
This legal action stemmed from the repeal of the Kano Emirate Law 2019 by the State House of Assembly on May 23, 2024, which abolished the five emirates created under ex-Governor Umar Ganduje from the original Kano Emirate.
The subsequent signing of the Kano Emirate Law 2024 by Governor Abba Yusuf reinstated Muhammadu Sanusi as the Emir of Kano.
In response to his removal, Bayero sought recourse in the Federal High Court in Kano, obtaining an ex parte order preventing his dismissal pending a human rights application.
While Bayero stayed at the Nasarawa mini palace, Sanusi took up residence at the Gidan Rumfa palace in Kano.
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Efforts by the governor to enforce Bayero’s eviction from Nasarawa were stymied by adherence to the Federal High Court’s order by the police.
The government then pursued a court order to restrain Bayero and other deposed emirs from holding themselves out as emirs and requiring them to vacate their respective palaces.
Justice Aliyu’s judgment affirmed the legality of the Kano Emirate Council Repeal Law 2024, executed by the State House of Assembly in accordance with Section 4 of Nigeria’s Constitution.
She also validated Governor Yusuf’s assent to the law as compliant with constitutional requirements.
Regarding Bayero’s residence at Nasarawa, Justice Aliyu deemed the matter a tenancy issue outside the court’s purview.
She instructed Bayero and the four other deposed emirs to promptly surrender all traditional royal artifacts to the government and to the substantive Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II.