Justice Gideon Kurada of Kaduna State High Court has issued an order for the leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, and his wife, Zeenat, to be given access to their private doctors at the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) facility in Kaduna with close supervision of the facility management.
The judge gave the order on Thursday following resumption of trial.
Justice Kurada also amended the charges against the defendants from four people to two and excluded two other accused persons who are still at large to enable the trial of the IMN leader and his wife to commence without delay.
The judge later adjourned till February 24 and 25.
Counsel to El-Zakzaky, Femi Falana, however, lamented the incessant adjournment of the case. He noted it was affecting the health and comfort of his clients.
Although both defendants were not in court on Thursday, security was, however, beefed up in the capital as all major roads leading to the court were cordoned off by security operatives.
El-Zakzaky and his wife are facing eight-count charges brought against them by the Kaduna State Government over allegations of culpable homicide, unlawful assembly, and disruption of the public peace, among others.
They have been in detention since their arrest in December 2015 following a clash between his members and soldiers in Zaria, Kaduna State.
During the last court sitting on December 5, 2019, Justice Kurada ordered the Department of State Security Service (DSS) to transfer the suspects to the detention facility of the Nigerian Correctional Service in Kaduna to allow their lawyers easy access to them.
