Kochi: The NIA recorded statements of Hadiya on Thursday and Friday ahead of her appearance before the Supreme Court on November 27. Her father K. M. Ashokan believes reports of girls trapped by dubious ‘Romeos’ may have had an impact on his daughter during her days in solitude. According to Mr Ashokan, his daughter still follows Islam, which he appreciates as her choice. But he would never be happy to see her go back to Shefin Jahan, who had been involved in criminal cases as a PFI activist.
Sources close to Mr Ashokan said he would provide the best of care to daughter. But he felt that the latest instance of a Malayali girl escaping from the clutches of her husband’s family in Saudi Arabia and seeking refuge in the Indian mission might have its impact on Hadiya, who had embraced Islam with best of intentions. He also referred to intercepted messages of women and children hailing from north Kerala stranded in Syria and their travails following the "martyrdom" of their husbands.
Mr Ashokan hoped to get more clarity in the case when she appears before the apex court, on the petition filed by Mr Jahan, seeking to quash the May 24 Kerala High Court annulment of their marriage. Sources said he declined permission an official of the State Women’s Commission to visit Hadiya three days ago because he believed there was no honest attempt to ascertain her situation after keeping off for months.
Mr Ashokan said: “We are fully cooperating with the investigation. She would be presented before the court." Meanwhile, Mr Jahan approached the DGP seeking protection for the girl and requesting that she be taken on the flight to New Delhi. Mr Ashokan said he was confident of the security being given by the State police and he would supplement her safety during the travel, for which he did not require Mr Jahan’s assistance.
The NIA took over the investigation in August. According to Mr Ashokan, his daughter Akhila, studying for a BHMS course at Salem in Tamil Nadu, was trapped by Islamists and forced to embrace the religion and forced into the marriage. Hadiya, however, refuted the allegation and said that she embraced the new faith in her own free will and decided to marry a person of her choice.
