Hadiya Case: SC rejects Ashokan's plea to postpone hearing

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday rejected a plea by Ashokan, father of Hadiya, to postpone the hearing of the case from Thursday. The court is expected to hear on Thursday the case on the petition to quash the Kerala High Court order which had annulled the marriage of Hadiya with Shafi Jahan.

The Division Bench led by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, while rejecting Ashokan's plea asking for more time, informed him that the case would be taken up Thursday, and at that time he will have an opportunity to respond.

Meanwhile, Hadiya on Tuesday filed an affidavit with the Supreme Court in which she sought compensation for unlawful custody and torture. She had said in effect that through the police security and other restrictions, her individual freedom was curtailed and she could not eat, pray or fast according to her religious beliefs. She also submitted that she wishes to continue living as a Muslim with her husband, and needed full freedom to practise her religion.

The SC had given Hadiya permission to state her case through an affidavit regarding her religious conversion and marriage with Shafij Jahan.

In parallel, her father Ashokan also has filed an affidavit in which he repeated the allegations of terrorism against Shafin Jahan which were earlier raised by him related to Hadiya's conversion and her marriage. The apex court had at an earlier stage made it clear that such aspects extraneous to the issue of marriage would be treated separately, and outside of the question of validity of the marriage, and the freedom of an adult couple to live together in marriage.