In a state of utter desperation and heartbreak, Ariha’s mother, Dhara, has sought the intervention of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the matter. She fervently hopes that a harried mother’s pleas and prayers to the Prime Minister will not go unheard.
A two-and-a-half-year-old Indian child has unwittingly been sucked into a custody tug-of-war between her Gujarati parents and German childcare authorities for almost two years, a report in the Hindi national daily, Dainik Bhaskar, says.
A German court failing to find any evidence of sexual abuse had already ruled that as an Indian citizen, custody rights of infant Ariha Shah be forthwith restored to her parents. However, German childcare authorities are unwilling to give up the child, delaying her return to her parents on one pretext or the other.
In a state of utter desperation and heartbreak, Ariha’s mother, Dhara, has sought the intervention of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the matter. She fervently hopes that a harried mother’s pleas and prayers to the Prime Minister will not go unheard.
Apart from the long ordeal of separation from their child since she was a 7-month-old infant, another major concern for Ariha’s parents and family members is that the child is being fed all sorts of non-vegetarian foods. Their Gujarati heritage and Jain religion strictly forbid the intake of such foods.
But how did a 7-month-old innocent child get embroiled in this unnecessary and long-drawn-out custody battle?
The nightmare began in 2021 when the 7-month child travelled with her paternal grandmother to join her parents in Germany. An accidental injury in Ariha’s genital region, perhaps whilst travelling, led her parents to seek immediate medical attention for their child in a local (German) hospital
But here, the situation took a bizarre turn. Hospital authorities alleged sexual abuse and refused to let the parents even touch their child, leave alone see her from a distance. Ariha was then summarily handed over for foster care in a Childcare Facility.
All this led to a long-drawn-out legal battle. Later, in December 2021, all allegations of sexual abuse/violence were found to be baseless and unfounded, and a German court dismissed the case.
Thereafter instead of letting Ariha’s parents take back their child, the German Childcare Facility transferred Ariha to another childcare facility, especially meant for mentally challenged children.
The parents were filled with dread and horror about how this would affect the future growth and mental balance of the child.
In solidarity, members of the Gujarati community in Germany had earlier staged a peaceful campaign against Ariha’s illegal confinement. They hope that Prime Minister Modi’s intervention will bring to a happy end the unwanted torture and ordeal of both the child and her parents and restore Ariha’s birthright as an Indian citizen.
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