• By Mayukh Debnath
  • Sat, 26 Oct 2024 12:43 AM (IST)
  • Source:JND

Ariha Shah Case: The case of three-year-old Ariha Shah, the Indian girl who has been in Germany's foster care system for since September 2021, was raised during a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in New Delhi on Friday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri informed on Friday.

"The case of Ariha Shah who is in Germany under foster has been followed very closely by us at various levels. Our Embassy in Berlin has taken it up with the German side. When EAM (External Affairs Minister) was in Germany he raised it strongly with his counterpart," the official said at a press briefing.

He added, "I can confirm (the matter) was raised during the meeting as well today. We have impressed upon the German side that an Indian child growing up in an environment which is not her religious, cultural and linguistic environment is not natural."

Misri further said Scholz had assured PM Modi that he was "very closely following" the issue. "I am sure the two sides will remain in touch through ongoing multiple channels," the foreign secretary stated.

WHO IS ARIHA SHAH?

- Ariha was born in February 2021.

- Her parents, father Bhavesh Shah and mother Dhara Shah, had resided in Germany for a few years by then.

- Bhavesh, a software engineer from Gujarat, had moved to Berlin along with his wife in 2018.

- Ariha was taken away from her parents by German authorities in Berlin when she was seven months old.

- The baby was placed in the custody of German authorities on September 21, 2021 on the basis of suspicion that she was physically abused.

- The child abuse angle was later ruled out by the same hospital that had alerted the authorities in the first place.

- All criminal charges against the couple were dropped in February 2022.

- Ariha was nonetheless placed in a parent-child facility, following recommendations from a court-appointed psychologist.

- In June 2023, a German court denied Ariha's parents her custody.

- She was, subsequently, placed in the custody of Jugendamt, the German youth services.

- As per media reports, Ariha's parents claimed that the injury that resulted in German authorities taking custody of their child was from when she was accidentally injured by her grandmother, who was visiting from India.

(With inputs from agencies)