A father in Tudun Rubudi of Ungogo local government, Kano State has given his 13-year-old daughter to one of the four men who allegedly gang-raped her.

Usaini Ja’afar alongside Sani Isa, Jamilu Sani and Isa Musa were all arrested in December 2014 by Kano State Hisbah Board’s Dala Command after they were all found naked at an uncompleted building shortly after they had raped the 13-year-old girl.

According to Hisbah officials, three of the suspects confessed that they had raped the girl who was lured to the uncompleted building. During interrogations, one of the rapists, Usiani Ja’afar pleaded to marry the girl, begging her father to give his blessings.

The father, Malam Ya’u, a mechanic, spoke to and revealed that he was at his garage working when Hisbah officials came with the news that his daughter had been raped.

Malam Ya’u said he wanted all of them to be tried and sent to jail for their crimes but had to change his stance after all of them showed remorse for the crime and one even pleading to marry the 13-year-old girl. “When all of them showed remorse, especially the one pleading to marry her, Ja’afar, I decided to temper justice with mercy,” the rape victim’s father told Weekly Trust.

According to Malam Yau, Usaini indicated his seriousness of marrying his daughter by carrying out the customary tradition of coming with his family to formally ask the hand of the girl in marriage. “He came with his uncle, who it turned out I already knew and had a cordial relationship with. So I accepted the request and will marry her off to him. In fact, the date for the wedding has been fixed since. I decided to allow him marry the girl because our consultations with our Malams (Islamic clerics) showed that there is nothing wrong about that,” Malam Ya’u said.

The forgiving father said he considered Ja’afar appeal because of the numerous plea he got from Usiani and his uncles. He also revealed that his daughter had undergone medical tests and result showed that she is okay.

According to Weekly Trust, aKano-based Islamic scholar, , said that the Islam religion allows for a rape victim to marry the man who raped her provided certain conditions are met. “First, the girl has to observe Istibira’i, a month period to ensure absence of pregnancy. The girl should not also be among those prohibited for the rapist. Provided those conditions are met, marriage can take place with the consent of the girl and her parents,” Shiekh Fadlu Dan Almajiri Fagge said.