A Kaduna State High Court has granted the embattled leader of the
Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, and his wife
Zeenat, leave to seek medical attention abroad.
In his ruling on Monday, Justice Darius Khobo ordered that the IMN
leader and his wife be accompanied abroad by officials of the Kaduna
State government.
The presiding judge ruled that El-Zakzaky and his wife should proceed to
India for medical treatment.
He, however, did not give any time frame as to how long they will stay
in India.
No date has been fixed for the defendants to embark on the medical trip.
Reacting to the ruling, counsel to the Kaduna State government, Dari
Bayero, said the prosecution team would go back and study the judgement
to see if there were grounds for appeal.
Counsel to the El-Zakzakys, Mr Femi Falena, however, clarified the
ruling of the court.
According to him, the judgement is just to grant the IMN leader and his
wife leave to seek medical attention abroad and not an outright bail
The trial of El-Zakzaky and his wife is expected to resume as soon as
they return from their medical treatment.
Mr Falana, a human rights activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, filed
the application on behalf of his clients on July 18.
At an earlier hearing on Monday last week, the senior lawyer told
Justice Khobo that his clients were not in court due to their bad health
condition.
He said the health condition of his clients was getting worse by the
day, adding that only a foreign medical treatment was required to
stabilise them to enable them face the main trial.
But Mr Bayero opposed the application, saying El-Zakzaky’s medical
condition could be treated in the country.
He informed the court that there was no need to release the Shiites’
leader on bail to travel abroad.
El-Zakzaky and his wife are facing an eight-count of culpable homicide,
unlawful assembly, disturbance of public peace.
The charges were filed against them by the Kaduna State Government and
the duo were first arraigned in May 2018.