"It is pertinent that under Islamic Law paternity of child may be proved by: (a) admission of the father, or (b) By presumption of law The first case under (a) above hardly occasions since admission of father usually avoids litigation. The second case under (b) is the commonest in paternal disputes. In the instant case, the Appellant has vehemently denied the paternity of child in question barely two months after the marriage and approached the trial Court to declare that he was not the one responsible for the Respondent daughter's pregnancy. However, the respondent alleged that before the marriage was contracted between the appellant and his daughter in accordance with the Islamic rites, the appellant had an affair with his daughter and impregnated her. A Court applying the principles of Islamic Law and faced with this sort of scenario would have analysed the marriage between the Appellant and the Respondent's daughter to first ascertain if there was valid marriage before invoking the principle of minimum period of gestation and drawing any presumption there-from. This is because such presumption is always predicated upon a valid marriage. From the facts and evidence adduced at the trial right through the appellate proceedings, the parties in the instant case were on common ground that the pregnancy was conceived before the marriage because the Appellant had paid dowry and was allowed to go into seclusion with the Respondent's daughter freely as good as if he had married her. It must be stressed here that the essentials of a valid marriage must, except one or two, coexist to constitute a valid marriage under Islamic Law. These are: (1) The parties to the marriage i.e. husband and wife, must be competent (free from any impediment whether of a permanent or temporary nature). (2) The consent of the parties, or of their guardians must be free. (3) Payment of dowry to the wife by the husband. (4) The marriage contract (Siegha) that is seeking the hands of the wife by the husband followed by the offer and the acceptance. (5) Presence of witnesses (a minimum of two male unimpeachable witnesses). (6) Intention of permanency (under Sunni school of thought but permissible by the shi'aites). (7) Marriage guardian for the wife (under some Sunni schools of thought except the Hanafi school). The absence of any of the foregoing essentials of a valid marriage, other than 6 and 7, which are not of general application, renders any purported marriage null and void. In the instant case, the Respondent alleged that the Appellant and his daughter commenced matrimonial life because dowry was paid. I must stress very strongly here that payment of dowry is only one of the essentials of a valid marriage and is paid at the time of a marriage contract or subsequently thereafter. If the Appellant gave what he called dowry, it was, at best for safe keeping pending the marriage as he could not have paid dowry before marriage. It was rather kept in preparation of the impending marriage contract, which it forms part of. If as admitted by the Respondent and his daughter, there was an illicit relationship that led to pregnancy before the marriage, it was capable of rendering the Respondent's