KOCHI: In a new twist in the sensational Hadiya case, K M Asokan, the father of Akhila, also known as Hadiya, who embraced Islam for marriage, filed a habeas corpus petition before the Kerala High Court on Friday. The petition seeks to bring his daughter before the court for legal scrutiny.
In 2018, the Supreme Court permitted Hadiya to live with her husband, Shafin Jahan, overturning a Kerala High Court Division Bench's order that had annulled their marriage.
According to Asokan, his daughter, after completing a Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine & Surgery (BHMS), established a Homoeo clinic post her marriage to Shafin Jahan.
The clinic was located near Markazul Hidaya, Sathyasarani Educational and Charitable Trust, and A S Sainaba of Malappuram. Concerned about his daughter's well-being, Asokan and his wife used to contact her and occasionally visited the clinic.
Recently, when Asokan's wife wanted their daughter to accompany her, Hadiya informed her mother that she no longer had marital relations with Shafin Jahan and was unaware of his whereabouts.
For the past month, Asokan has been unable to reach his daughter, with her phone frequently switched off. On December 3, upon visiting the clinic, he discovered it closed, and neighbors were unaware of Hadiya's whereabouts. Asokan now fears that his daughter is in the illegal custody of individuals associated with Sainaba and Shafin Jahan, and he suspects collusion and connivance in this regard.
Asokan has raised concerns about potential harm to his daughter, alleging that those holding her may have affiliations with the Popular Front of India. Advocate C Rajendran, representing the petitioner, urged the court to direct the production of Hadiya before the court and secure her freedom.