Hadiya, alias Akhila Ashokan, the face of the alleged ‘love jihad’ case from Kerala, thanked the Supreme Court on Monday for its order upholding her marriage to husband Shafin Jahan.
Addressing a press conference, days after the top court order, Hadiya said she was grateful to the bench for allowing her to reunite with her husband.
I am happy that I have got freedom now. I had approached the court for two things: One, I wanted to live as a Muslim, and second, I wanted to live with my partner.
Also thanking her supporters, she said she expressed her gratitude towards all those who had stood by her side in “her long battle for justice,” she told reporters.
Earlier on Friday, a day after the SC order, Hadiya had said that she was extremely satisfied with the order. She also thanked the government of Tamil Nadu for ‘protecting her and cooperating’ with her when she was in her Salem college.
Asked about the order having come out on Women’s Day, Hadiya said that it only indicated the Court’s value for a woman, and what she does.
Shafin Jahan too, took to Facebook to express his happiness over the verdict.
“Thank you, almighty for this. Thank you for everyone for your prayers”, he wrote.
The court on Thursday, 8 March, reversed the Kerala High Court’s annulment of her marriage to Shafin Jahan, stating that the NIA probe could not intervene into her marriage.
The court had further observed that the duty of the high court was to protect constitutional rights and not to deny them.
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