Hadiya ‘love jihad’ case: No need for NIA probe, Kerala government tells SC

The case pertains to the conversion of a Hindu girl Akhila Ashokan to Islam and her marriage to one Shafin Jahan. Acting on a petition by her father that she was forcefully and fraudulently converted, the marriage was annulled by the Kerala High Court which found inconsistencies in the claims made by the parties.

Subsequently, Jahan approached the Supreme Court and made the National Investigation Agency a party in his petition. The girl’s father too approached the SC. The SC bench headed by former Chief Justice of India justice J S Khehar sought a preliminary report from the NIA.

READ: Hadiya ‘love jihad’ case: SC has a question — Can High Court annul a marriage?

In it’s preliminary report, NIA said that the case did not appear to be an isolated one and that it found a pattern in some other cases too and also hinted at the involvement of anti-national elements.

Subsequently the apex court ordered full fledged enquiry by the NIA in the matter. The court however agreed to take a decision in the Hadiya case only after hearing the girl.

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Justice Khehar retired at the end of July and Jahan again approached the SC where a bench headed by new CJI Dipak Misra heard the matter. The court wondered how a HC could annul a marriage between adults and posted the matter for hearing on October 9.

In the latest affidavit, the government said the state police “investigating team was going on with their investigation to this honorable court directed the National Investigation Agency to conduct the investigation in the case”.

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“The Kerala Police is competent to conduct the investigation in such crimes and would have reported to the Central government if any scheduled offences found to have been committed during such investigation as per the provisions of the NIA Act”, it added.