The Federal High Court in Kaduna on Tuesday adjourned the bail hearing of former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai to Wednesday, after proceedings could not go ahead as scheduled.

Following the adjournment, operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) took Mr El-Rufai back into custody.

The anti-graft agency had earlier granted him temporary release on compassionate grounds to attend his mother’s funeral. He had been in detention since February over corruption allegations and was formally remanded by the court on 24 March pending the hearing of his bail application.

Mr El-Rufai was produced in court on Tuesday under tight security. Journalists were barred from entering the courtroom during the proceedings. His lawyer, Ukpong Akpan, confirmed that the bail application was adjourned but declined to give details, noting that legal filings were still ongoing.

After the session, ICPC operatives escorted the former governor out of the court premises.

The decision by the ICPC to release Mr El-Rufai days earlier had drawn criticism from some lawyers and members of the public, who argued that it undermined a valid court order and suggested preferential treatment.

Mr El-Rufai had attended his mother’s burial in Abuja on Sunday after her death in Cairo, Egypt.

The ICPC arraigned Mr El-Rufai on 24 March on a 10-count charge bordering on alleged corruption and money laundering.

According to the commission, he unlawfully collected inflated severance packages totalling about ₦579.7 million at the end of his two terms in office, instead of the ₦40 million he was allegedly entitled to.

The agency also accused him of receiving $817,900 in suspected illicit funds through his domiciliary bank account in multiple transactions between 2016 and 2023 while serving as governor.

The charges were filed under provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

Mr El-Rufai, who governed Kaduna State from 2015 to 2023, is also facing other legal proceedings, including a separate case involving alleged misconduct currently pending before another court.

The bail hearing is expected to continue on Wednesday.