Baby Ariha Shah's case was raised in Modi-Scholz talks: Foreign secretary

The case of Ariha Shah, a three-year-old Indian girl who has been in foster care in Germany, was raised during a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz here on Friday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said. At a media briefing, the foreign secretary also said the chancellor has assured the prime minster that he is "very closely following" the issue.

The girl has been in foster care in Germany for more than 36 months following allegations of minor physical abuse.

Her parents, Bhavesh and Dhara Shah, are residents of Mira Bhayander in Maharashtra's Thane district.


"The case has been followed very, very closely by us.... Our embassy in Berlin has taken it up. When the external affairs minister was in Germany a few weeks ago, he had raised it very strongly with his counterpart," Misri said.

"Yes, I can confirm that it was raised during the meeting today as well. We have at all levels impressed upon the German side that an Indian child growing up in an environment that is not hers -- cultural, religious, linguistic environment -- is somewhat unnatural and that this situation needs to be addressed," he added.

The foreign secretary said Scholz assured Modi that "he is very closely following this issue and continues to pay close attention to it", adding, "I am sure that both sides will remain in touch on this issue through various channels."

German Ambassador to India Philipp Ackermann had said on Wednesday that German authorities are in "very close contact" with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the relevant youth authorities in connection with the case of Ariha Shah.

Ackermann said this in response to a query during a press interaction held at his residence here on what Germany was willing to do to bring the girl back and whether her issue will be raised at the "highest level".