"Centre Has Given Lot Of Hope": Mother of Indian Baby In German Foster Care

India has asserted that it is important for the child to be in her linguistic, religious, cultural and social environment.

The Ministry of External Affairs urging German authorities to send Ariha Shah, the 27-month-old Indian girl who has been living in foster care in Berlin since September 2021, back to India at the earliest has given her mother "a lot of hope", she said in an interview with news agency PTI. VIDEO | "The MEA has released a very strong statement, asking German authorities to send Ariha (Shah) back to India at the earliest. This has given us a lot of hope that Ariha will soon return to her country," says Dhara Shah, mother of the Indian baby girl who has been living in… pic.twitter.com/t9I4lB5QaC

Ariha's mother Dhara Shah had earlier said she and her husband had taken the baby to a doctor in September 2021 after they spotted blood in her diaper. They took Ariha back home when the doctor gave the all-clear, but when she was taken for a follow-up, the hospital handed Ariha over to German child services and an attempt was made to accuse the parents of sexually abusing her.

"The MEA has released a very strong statement, asking German authorities to send Ariha (Shah) back to India at the earliest. This has given us a lot of hope that Ariha will soon return to her country," Dhara Shah told PTI.