Court: Police To Pay 3m To Group  For Breach Of Human Rights

Recently, a Delta State High Court  sitting in Asaba  has awarded N3 million to a group, The Brothers Across Nigeria, (BAN) as compensation for the breach of its fundamental human rights.

The court declared  that the group  did not need the approval of the police before its members could hold their conferences and gatherings.

The presiding judge, Justice T. O Diai, also prohibited the police from invading or harassing members of the group in their lawful assembly or association and also ordered the police to publicly apologise to members of the registered association for the violation of their fundamental rights as enshrined by law.

A certified true copy of the  judgment obtained by a media organisation also stated that the applicant had satisfactorily established that its fundamental human rights were breached, under Section 34, 35 and 40 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of  Nigeria.

The group, Incorporated Trustees of Brothers Across Nigeria, (as applicants, suing for its members) had instituted a human rights case against the Nigerian Police.

In the case with suit no: A/M/97/2018,  the applicant alleged that on August 5, 2018, at 9.13am, the respondent unlawfully invaded their hotel rooms with arms and arrested its members, detained and tortured them at the police cell of Delta State Police Command, Asaba.