Working to ensure the safety of the Maldivian girls being kept in India: Ministry
The three girls were kept in an orphanage in India for over a year, by their Indian mother
The three girls were put in an orphanage over a year ago, under the pretense that their father had passed away
Ministry of Gender and Family has said it is investigating the case where a Maldivian father is struggling to bring his three children back to the Maldives from India.
A documentary aired on RaajjeTV on Friday night, shared the story of a father, Abdulla Basheer, on a pursuit to bring his three daughters back home, after their mother- an Indian- took them to India with her, placing them in an orphanage over a year ago, under the pretense that their father had passed away.
Gender Ministry, on Sunday, told RaajjeMV that all relevant institutions are working to ensure the safety of the children, adding that the case was submitted to them by the family.
A document sent to Basheer by the Gender Ministry after he submitted the case
While there are indications that the children had been abused in the orphanage, a Ministry official said that they cannot reveal any further information to the media, as it is an ongoing case.
READ MORE: The story of three displaced Maldivian girls; taken, abandoned and mistreated
The three children, born to Abdulla Basheer from AA. Ukulhas and Saaed’ali Fathima, have been in India since 2013, ever since their mother took them with her for holidays, and decided to not return to Maldives.
After a year in the orphanage, the children were released with the help of the Maldivian Consulate in India, who despite the circumstances decided to hand the children back to their mother.
Basheer and his father, Abdulla Naeeem, had told the officials that they wanted to take the children back to Maldives, who threatened to report them to the Indian authorities. Basheer and his father are still awaiting on a way to bring the three girls back home.
While Basheer was forced to sign a document acknowledging the Consulate’s decision to hand the children over to the mother, he and his father believe that they had been tricked by the office as well.
“The letter was an insult. It had no national stamps or emblems. It was something you would hand to cheat or fraud. Something that was as casual as a poem or a song or something. It was just a real insult,” said Basheer’s father Naeem.
After failing to get any assistance from Maldivian authorities, the family accused the government of not having any respect for the people.
“I am a taxpaying citizen. Not one state institution lifted a finger to help. So, I honestly cannot believe that the current government has any respect for human values, or its citizens,” added Naeem.
In a tweet sent out on Friday, former attorney general Dhiyana Saeed called on authorities "to intervene," reminiding them that its been done before.
