“All this happened because I embraced Islam” Hadiya on her freedom

The Hadiya love-jihad case of Kerala had quickly grabbed the attention of the nation.

Days after the Supreme Court set aside a Kerala High Court order and allowed Hadiya to live with her husband Shefin Jahan, the 24-year-old said the couple has got freedom.

On her first visit to her home state Kerala after the Supreme Court upheld her marriage with Shafin Jahan, Hadiya on Saturday said: “all this happened as I embraced Islam”. 

Hadiya, formerly called Akhila, left Hinduism to embrace Islam in January 2016. Months later, she married Jahan, a Muslim. The marriage triggered allegations of forced conversion, leading her father to file a case on the same. Hadiya has maintained that she converted of her own will.

READ ALSO: ‘I am a Muslim and want to remain one’,says Hadiya to Supreme Court

“The Constitution gives all the freedom to choose their religion, which is a fundamental right of every citizen and all this happened because I embraced Islam,” said Hadiya while interacting with the media. 

Hadiya and her husband arrived here on Saturday from Salem and drove to the office of the Popular Front of India (PFI) where she briefly interacted with reporters. 

“With the Supreme Court upholding our marriage, we feel we have got freedom,” Hadiya said here. The top court on March 8, set aside an order of the Kerala High Court that annulled their marriage. 

Hadiya, 24, earlier Akhila Ashokan, embraced Islam and married Shafin Jahan, a Muslim. Hadiya’s father alleged that she was forcibly converted by groups with links to terrorist outfits. 

READ ALSO: Supreme Court on Kerala love jihad case; Hadiya is an adult woman

“It was only the PFI that supported us all through our troubled times and what’s more surprising is that two Muslim organizations whom we approached refused to help us,” added Hadiya who will be in Kerala for three more days before returning to Salem in Tamil Nadu where she is studying. 

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud on Thursday said: “Hadiya alias Akhila Asokan is at liberty to pursue her future endeavors according to law.” 

However, the court also said the National Investigation Agency (NIA) would continue its probe into the criminal dimension of the case if any. 

Hadiya’s father has said that he will go ahead in the case seeking legal recourse to the apex court’s latest judgment.