In a significant development in Kano State, Nigeria, police forces have assumed control of the emir's palace, replacing the local guards who were previously protecting Muhammadu Sanusi, the recently reinstated emir. This action appears to be part of a larger plan to facilitate the return of Aminu Bayero, the former 15th Emir of Kano, following a court ruling that challenged his dethronement.

The situation stems from a complex legal and political dispute. On Thursday, a federal high court in Kano invalidated the state government's actions that had repealed the Emirates Council Law of 2019. Judge Muhammad Liman ruled that the defendants had disregarded a previous interim order and improperly implemented the new law.

This legal decision comes after a series of events that began on May 23, when the Kano house of assembly passed an amended bill, signed into law by Governor Abba Yusuf. This new law repealed the 2019 version that had divided the Kano emirate into five jurisdictions and led to Sanusi's dethronement in 2020. Following the repeal, Sanusi was reinstated as Emir of Kano.

However, this reinstatement was challenged in court by Aminu Babba Dan Agundi and Sarkin Dawaki Babba of the Kano emirate. The court subsequently ordered a suspension of the new law's implementation.

The situation is further complicated by the Kano police command's refusal to comply with the state government's directive to evict Bayero from the Nassarawa palace, where he has been residing under military and police protection since Sanusi's reinstatement.