Sharia Police Cancel Court-Ordered Wedding of TikTok Celebrities in Kano
By Mary Kelly
Kano — Sharia-enforcing police in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have cancelled a controversial court-ordered wedding between two TikTok celebrities, following revelations that one of them lied about being in love to avoid prosecution over a viral kissing video.
The couple, Idris Mai Wushirya and Basira Yar Guda, became the center of public debate after videos showing them cuddling and kissing circulated on TikTok, sparking outrage in Kano’s conservative Muslim community.
A magistrate court had ordered the Hisbah, Kano’s Islamic moral police, to solemnize the marriage within 60 days, ruling that the pair’s “indecent” conduct violated moral standards under the state’s interpretation of Islamic Sharia law. Kano is one of twelve predominantly Muslim states in northern Nigeria that operates Sharia law alongside the country’s secular legal system.
However, plans for the ceremony were abruptly halted after Mai Wushirya told Hisbah officials that he had misled the court.
> “Mai Wushirya told us that he lied to the court that he and Yar Guda were in love to evade prosecution,”said Abba Sufi, Director-General of the Hisbah, speaking to AFP.“With this development, we have cancelled the wedding and referred the matter back to the judge for appropriate action.”
According to Hisbah officials, the Kano state government had agreed to provide a house for the couple to meet one of the bride’s stated conditions, and Mai Wushirya’s parents had already given their consent for the marriage. Hisbah was still attempting to contact Yar Guda’s family when the cancellation was announced.
The unprecedented court order triggered widespread debate across Nigeria. The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) condemned the ruling as unconstitutional and “an affront to the fundamental rights of the individuals concerned.”
> “No court has the power to compel any person to marry another person, or two persons to mandatorily marry,”said Mazi Afam Osigwe, the NBA’s president, in a statement.
Kano is home to Kannywood, the Hausa-language film industry often described as Africa’s second-largest after India’s Bollywood, producing more than 200 films monthly. As social media gains popularity among Kannywood actors and influencers, local censors have expanded their oversight to online platforms.
Hisbah and the state’s censors board have recently arrested and jailed several TikTokers for videos considered obscene or contrary to Kano’s cultural and religious values.
The cancellation of the court-ordered marriage has reignited discussion on the tension between religious morality laws and individual rights in northern Nigeria, as digital expression increasingly collides with traditional norms.
