SC sends Hadiya back to college
NEWDELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday asked Hadiya, a 24-yearold woman from Kerala who converted from Hinduism to Islam, to return to a homeopathy college in Salem to complete her studies.
A bench led by CJI Dipak Misra didn’t say anything on her husband Shafin Jahan’s plea against a Kerala HC order annulling their marriage.
NEWDELHI:The Supreme Court on Monday asked Hadiya, a 24-yearold woman from Kerala who converted from Hinduism to Islam, to return to a homeopathy college in Salem to complete her studies, freeing her from the custody of her parents.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, however, didn’t say anything on her husband Shafin Jahan’s plea against a Kerala high court order annulling their marriage. The matter, which has come to be known as the “love jihad” case and has a bearing on inter-religious marriages and a woman’s right to choose her partner, will now be heard in January.
“I want freedom… I want to complete my studies and live my life according to my faith and as a good citizen,” Hadiya said, when asked if she wanted to go back to college. The court told the college to allow her to complete an internship and the Kerala Police to ensure she joined the institute in Tamil Nadu at the earliest.
Hadiya’s marriage to Jahan was struck down on May 24 and her custody given to her parents, who challenged the relationship in the Kerala high court on the grounds that it was part of a systematic conversion drive.
“I want to meet my husband,” Hadiya said, adding that she was in unlawful custody for the last 11 months. She had spent five months in a girls’ hostel before being sent to her parents.
Hadiya wanted Jahan to be named her guardian. “Your husband cannot be your guardian. You can approach the dean if there are any problems,” the three-judge bench said.
The court accepted Hadiya’s submission that her husband would take care of the expenses but refused her request to be allowed to meet or talk to her husband freely.