Popular Nigerian Islamic Cleric, Dr. Sharafdeen Gbadebo Declares DNA Paternity Test Forbidden in Islam
Emmanuel Femi Adedayo 
A prominent Islamic cleric, Dr Sharafudeen Gbadebo, has cautioned Muslim couples against conducting DNA tests to determine the paternity of children, stressing that such practice is not allowed in Islam.
The scholar made this declaration during one of his recent lectures delivered in Yoruba language and monitored by a Legit.ng correspondent.
According to him, Islam has already provided clear guidelines on the issue of paternity, and resorting to scientific methods such as DNA testing is both unnecessary and forbidden for Muslims.
Dr Gbadebo said:
“Why would you (Muslims) do DNA test? Islam does not allow us to doubt the paternity of a child conceived by a wife legally married. This is why it is said that the man who owns a wife owns the children she gives birth to. The position of Islam is that anybody that engages in fornication or adultery with a woman will be entitled to nothing.”
The cleric noted that Islam recognizes a procedure called Lian in cases where a husband questions the paternity of a child. He explained that Lian requires both husband and wife to take solemn oaths before God.
The husband, according to him, must swear by God four times that the child is not his, while invoking divine punishment if he lies. Similarly, the wife must also swear four times that the child indeed belongs to the husband, asking God’s anger to befall her if she is lying.
The cleric noted that Islam recognizes a procedure called Lian in cases where a husband questions the paternity of a child. He explained that Lian requires both husband and wife to take solemn oaths before God. The husband, according to him, must swear by God four times that the child is not his, while invoking divine punishment if he lies.
Similarly, the wife must also swear four times that the child indeed belongs to the husband, asking God’s anger to befall her if she is lying.
Dr Gbadebo added that once this procedure is completed, the man is permanently stripped of the right to claim paternity of the child, and the marriage is automatically annulled. “This procedure allows you to deny the paternity of a child you are sure is not yours as a Muslim. So why would a Muslim need DNA to determine paternity?
Let’s take for instance, two people engage in sex out of wedlock, and this led to giving birth to a child, is there any DNA test that would grant the man paternity of such a child in Islam? There is none. It is forbidden. That child will always be seen as a product of Zina,” he said.
The cleric further maintained that DNA tests, whether expensive or affordable, have no place in Islam. “They even said it is expensive, even if it is for a token, a Muslim must not do it,” he stressed.
His remarks come at a time when DNA testing is becoming increasingly popular in Nigeria, especially in cases of suspected infidelity and paternity disputes.
Several viral cases of alleged paternity fraud have sparked heated conversations online, with many Nigerians debating whether DNA testing should be made compulsory at birth.
However, Dr Gbadebo insisted that for Muslims, the guidance of Islam remains superior to science in such matters.
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