The Islamic police in Kano, popularly known as Hisbah, on Tuesday, arrested 11 Muslims for violating the Ramadan fast by eating during daylight hours.
Kano, with a majority Muslim population, operates under Sharia law alongside secular law.
The arrests were made during Hisbah’s annual Ramadan enforcement operations, including eateries and markets searches.
According to Hisbah spokesman Lawal Fagge, the arrests included ten men and one woman, who was caught eating from her groundnut-selling stall.
He said the arrests were made across the city, particularly near markets.
Fagge clarified that non-Muslims are exempt from such enforcement activities, but if found selling food during fasting hours to Muslims, they could be considered in violation.
“We got 11 persons on Tuesday, including a lady selling groundnuts who was seen eating from her wares, and some persons alerted us.
“The other 10 were men and were arrested across the city especially close to markets where a lot of activities happen.
“We don’t arrest non-Muslims because this doesn’t concern them, and the only time they could be guilty of a crime is when we find out they cook food to sell to Muslims that are supposed to be fasting,” Fagge told the BBC.
