Justice Saliu Mohammed, a judge of the Sharia Court of Appeal in Ilorin, on Wednesday called for extension in the jurisdiction of the court.

Mohammed made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin against the backdrop of the current efforts to amend the constitution.

The judge, who urged members of the National Assembly to grant more powers to the court to entertain all Islamic issues, said:

"As it is now, only Islamic personal law is in the 1999 Constitution for the court to address.

"These include matters such as divorce, family and inheritance," he said.

He, however, advocated for jurisdiction similar to that of the Customary Court of Appeal.

"The court should be empowered to exercise appellate and supervisory jurisdiction involving Islamic issues rather than Islamic personal law only.

"There is need to enlarge the jurisdiction of the Sharia Court of Appeal, just like that of the Customary Court of Appeal

"If the Sharia Court of Appeal should be given jurisdiction similar to Customary Court, the judges will have powers over civil cases," he further stated. (NAN)