Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday returned to its registry for reassignment a fundamental rights suit filed by the detained self-styled Director General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, Adeniyi Adeyemi.

The court declined to proceed with the hearing, after establishing that the 72-hour period given to the respondents to show cause why Adeyemi’s remaining reliefs should be granted had not expired.

The matter, which came up before Justice Obiora Egwuatu, had been scheduled for the respondents to show cause in response to Adeyemi’s application.

At the proceedings, counsel for the applicant, Muhammad Abdulaziz, told the court that the respondents had been duly served and that the applicant was ready to proceed.

The Counsel for the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mercy Akeredolu, was also in court, while other respondents were absent.

Justice Egwuatu, however, queried the timing of the service and pointed out that the 72-hour period had not elapsed.

The judge also questioned the competence of the proof of service for the hearing notice, asking whether it had been properly deposed to before a commissioner for oaths.

He subsequently held that the respondents had not yet exhausted the period granted to them to show cause.

Justice Egwuatu thereafter returned the case file to the registry for reassignment, directing the applicant to return when the respondents’ time had expired and the matter was ready to proceed.