A housewife, Umma Bashir, has approached a Sharia Court in Kaduna State over a dispute with her husband, Bashir Ibrahim, accusing him of renting out her bedroom without informing her.
The matter came before Sharia Court II sitting in Magajin Gari, where the woman alleged that her husband deprived her and their two children of adequate accommodation after leasing out one of the rooms allocated to them.
Testifying before the court, Umma said her husband had initially provided two rooms for her family but later rented out one of the rooms without her knowledge.
She told the court that she discovered the development upon returning from a five-day visit to her parents.
According to her, she met her bedroom locked and her personal belongings moved into the sitting room.
“When I asked him about it, he told me the room belonged to him and that he could do whatever he wanted with it,” she said.
The complainant further informed the court that she would not return to the matrimonial home until her husband provided suitable accommodation for her and the children.
She also alleged that her two co-wives each occupied separate two-bedroom apartments with their children, while she had been left to cope with only one room.
Responding to the allegations, Ibrahim admitted renting out the room but denied carrying out the action without informing his wife.
He told the court that he had explained his intention to lease the room in order to raise funds for the renovation of another apartment where he planned to relocate her.
According to him, the proceeds from the rent were meant to finance the improvement of the proposed residence.
After hearing both parties, the presiding judge, Malam Musa Sa’ad, stressed that providing adequate shelter remained a fundamental responsibility of a husband.
The judge observed that it was inappropriate for a couple and their two teenage children to share a single room, noting that the welfare of the family must be prioritised.
He subsequently adjourned the case to enable the court conduct an inspection of the residence and evaluate its living conditions before making a determination.