Ameen Abubakar, 35, of Kurmin Mashi quarters, Kaduna, was on Friday arraigned before a Kaduna Sharia Court for allegedly kidnapping his three-year-old son, Khalifa.
The complainant, Maryam Abubakar of the same address, told the court that Abubakar, her former husband, had asked her to spend 40 days at her parents’ house after putting to bed.
She further told the court that Abubakar had not visited or sent any money for her upkeep.
“The only thing I received from him was a divorce letter without a reason.’’
Maryam said that after the divorce, she discovered that Khalifa was missing and when the matter was investigated by the police, he was found in his father’s custody.
Counsel to the complainant, Lydia Izan, said that it was the responsibility of the father to take care of his child and urged the court to direct him to refund what is due to the mother.
Counsel to the accused, Sani Shehu Sanusi, however, argued that the allegation was baseless.
“The father has been taking care of his child within his capacity as a tailor and he cannot carry responsibilities beyond his earnings,’’ he said.
Sanusi added that the complainant was making demands that were beyond the capacity of her former husband and urged the court to strike out the case as there was no provision in Sharia Law that says “we should feed our children with what we don’t have’’.
Sanusi further demanded the sum of N50,000 compensation for time wasted.
The judge, Usman Ibrahim Abubakar, said that the child should be brought to the court alongside three witnesses from both parties before delivering judgment in the case and adjourned the case to Aug. 31.