MPs write to German envoy: ‘More than time to send baby Ariha back’

On Friday, the Centre also officially asked Germany to let Ariha return to India, saying that it is her inalienable right as an Indian national.

Among the signatories of the letter are Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, his party colleague Shashi Tharoor, BJP’s Hema Malini and Maneka Gandhi, DMK’s Kanimozhi, NCP’s Supriya Sule, TMC’s Mahua Moitra, SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav, RJD’s Manoj Jha, AAP’s Sanjay Singh, CPI(M) Elamaran Kareem and John Brittas, Akali Dal’s Harsimrat Kaur Badal, BSP’s Kunwar Danish Ali, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Priyanka Chaturvedi, CPI’s Binoy Viswam and National Conference MP Farooq Abdullah.

The MPs of BRS, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Kerala Congress (M), National People’s Party, and TDP are also its signatories.

“It was heartwarming that across parties the MPs, when contacted, had no hesitation to support the effort of bringing Ariha home,” senior CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat told The Sunday Express.

Ariha’s parents, a Gujarati couple who had moved to Germany in 2018, have been fighting for her custody for the last 21 months. The child has been in foster care since September 23, 2021, when German authorities took over her custody after she suffered an accidental injury. She was seven months old then.

The German authorities alleged that Ariha’s parents — Dhara and Bhavesh Shah — had harassed her.

The Parliamentarians wrote: “We, Members from both Houses of India’s Parliament, belonging to 19 political parties across the political spectrum are writing this joint letter to you with an urgent request regarding the repatriation to India of Ariha Shah, a two year old baby girl, a citizen of India as are her parents Dhara and Bhavesh Shah. The family were in Berlin as the baby’s father was employed in a company there. The family should have been back in India by now but for some tragic events.”

“We do not cast aspersions on any agency in your country and assume that whatever was done was thought to be in the best interests of the baby,” they wrote.

“We respect the legal procedures in your country, but given that there are no criminal cases pending against any member of the said family, it is more than time to send the baby back home.”

The MPs pointed out that the police case was closed in February 2022 without any charges against Ariha’s parents. Despite this, they noted, the baby was not returned to her parents and the German Child Services pressed for permanent custody of the child in German courts.

“The case has taken over a year-and-a-half for an evaluation of the parents by a court-appointed psychologist. This was completed in December 2022,” the MPs pointed out in their letter. “The court-appointed psychologist recommended that the child should be placed with either parent in a parent-and-child facility, with the other parent regularly visiting her.

“Even though this would be impractical as it would mean a prolonged stay in Germany, it is a recognition that the baby could be with her parents, under supervision. But, before court orders, the Jugendamt (German Child Services) removed the baby to a special needs facility.”