Trying to ensure return of baby Ariha, says MEA

New Delhi, July 20

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said it was trying to ensure the return of baby Ariha, who has been taken away from her parents and is under enforced foster care in Germany.

“We have been keeping a track of the issue. I don’t know if this will be part of discussion with the visiting German Vice-Chancellor as the agenda is slightly different. The larger point is we have made very clear our desire

to safeguard the child’s cultural and national identity and ensure her return to India,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi at a media briefing here.

“We remain engaged with the German authorities in this regard. And of course there are separate parallel judicial proceedings underway. We are keeping close track of that,” he added. A couple of days earlier, members of the Indian community had held protests in Frankfurt after a Berlin court granted Ariha’s custody to the German state and dismissed the parents’ contention that the injury sustained by their child was “accidental”.

In a statement, Ariha’s parents said they were confident that the government would bring Ariha back to India. “From today, we hand over Ariha to 140 crore Indians,” they said in a statement.