Nigeria’s Supreme Court has granted permission for Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, a musician sentenced to death for alleged blasphemy, to file an appeal outside the legally prescribed timeframe.
Sharif-Aminu was convicted in 2020 by a Kano State sharia court for making blasphemous remarks about the Prophet Mohammad.
His legal team argued that the trial was flawed due to the absence of legal representation during proceedings.
“We received only one day’s notice before the judgment, which was delivered via Zoom.
We needed time to properly study it before filing our appeal,” said Kola Alapinni, Sharif-Aminu’s lawyer. The court has ordered an accelerated hearing, and the appeal will be filed next week.
The defense team is also challenging the constitutionality of sections of Kano State’s sharia law that prescribe capital punishment and amputation, arguing they conflict with Nigeria’s secular constitution.
Lamido Abba Sorondinki, counsel for the Kano State government, defended the original verdict, stating, “If the Supreme Court upholds the lower court’s decision, we will execute him publicly.” The case has drawn national and international attention, highlighting tensions between religious law and constitutional rights in Nigeria.
