The Federal High Court in Abuja has rescheduled the hearing of a police suit against Omoyele Sowore and other conveners of the #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protest to 5 November, following the absence of the presiding judge.

Justice Mohammed Umar, who was expected to sit on Wednesday, was said to be attending to matters at the Enugu Division of the court. The case, listed as number 11 on the cause list, was consequently adjourned.

On 17 October, Justice Umar had directed the respondents to show cause why an interim order restraining them from protesting should not be vacated. However, the hearing was stalled on 20 October when the planned protest paralysed activities at the Federal High Court premises in Abuja.

The judge had earlier granted an interim order sought by the police, barring Sowore and others from holding protests around sensitive areas such as the Aso Rock Villa, National Assembly, Force Headquarters, Court of Appeal, Eagle Square, and Shehu Shagari Way pending the hearing of the substantive motion.

He also abridged the time within which the respondents must respond to the motion on notice seeking to set aside the interim order.

The ex-parte motion, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2202/2025, was filed by the police lawyer, Wisdom Madaki, on behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN).

The respondents include Sowore, Sahara Reporters Ltd., and Sahara Reporters Media Foundation as first to third defendants, while Take It Back Movement (TIB) and unnamed persons allegedly acting under similar instructions were listed as fourth and fifth respondents.

In an affidavit supporting the motion, Bassey Ibithan, a police officer attached to the Directorate of Legal Services, claimed that allowing the protest could endanger national security.

Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters and 2019/2023 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), had planned the peaceful protest to demand the release of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).