“I was not forcibly converted nor was I forced to marry. I want to go with my husband and I should get justice.” This is what Hadiya screamed aloud on Saturday, with the media cameras zooming in on her, before her departure to Delhi from Kochi international airport.
The 25-year-old Muslim convert was flying to Delhi and is scheduled to appear before the Supreme Court for a hearing on November 27, when she is expected to give her side of the case of her conversion and marriage.
Hadiya was again repeating what she has maintained all along that she was not forcibly converted nor was she forced to marry.
Earlier it became known on Friday that Hadiya will be taken by flight to Delhi instead of by train, due to security concerns associated with a train journey.
One of the lawyers representing Hadiya’s father Asokan had told TNM on Thursday, “Though the decision was to take her to Delhi by train, we were asked by the government to arrange air travel as there were security concerns about the train journey.” He added that the Kerala government is flying Hadiya to Delhi at its expense.
Her husband Shafin Jahan though denied any knowledge of her being taken by flight to Delhi.
Hadiya’s case has attracted national attention, ever since the Kerala High Court had annulled her marriage to Shafin.
The court had raised doubts based on Ashokan’s allegations that his daughter (earlier called Akhila) had been lured to convert to Islam and subsequently agree for marriage, and there were plans to take her to Syria.
Ever since the HC verdict, Hadiya has been confined to her parents’ home. She has not been allowed to go outside or meet anyone without her father’s permission.
Allegations have been raised about Hadiya’s safety and well-being at her home, with Hadiya herself saying in a video that she fears for her life.
Hadiya’s father Asokan, had even approached the SC on Tuesday seeking an in-camera hearing, instead of an open court, but the court turned down his request.