Representational Image
After nine-months of her birth, Anamta Aceline Kiran, who was born to a Hindu father and Muslim mother, finally got her birth certificate from the UAE government on April 14.
Keeping its marriage rules for expatriates aside, the government provided a legal birth certificate to the girl, who was born to Sharjah-based expat Kiran Babu and Sanam Saboo Siddique.
According to the media reports, UAE is observing 2019 as the Year of Tolerance to highlight itself as an exemplary example of a tolerant nation, bridging the communication gap between different cultures and build an environment where people accept each other and their religions, which is why the country had decided to amend its rule.
"I am told that this is the first case where the rule has been amended," Kiran said.
Kiran and Sanam got married in Kerala in 2016 and their daughter was born in July 2018. As per the marriage rules for expatriates in UAE, a Muslim man can marry a non-Muslim woman but a Muslim woman cannot marry a non-Muslim man.
Kiran has an Abu Dhabi visa. He got his insurance coverage there and got his wife admitted to Medeor 24X7 Hospital in the emirate. The couple faced and unusual situation when their baby was born. The birth certificate was rejected as Kiran is a Hindu.
"I, then applied for a no-objection certificate through the court. The trial went on for four months but my case was rejected," Kiran said to the media.
With no legal documents of his daughter in hand, Anamta's father pinned his hopes on the amnesty period.
"Those days were stressful and the amnesty was a window of hope. The Indian Embassy helped with the provision of an out pass. But the baby was denied immigration clearance as there was no data or registration number to prove her birth," he said.
He also said that the Indian Embassy counsellor M. Rajamurugan supported them throughout the process. Rajamurugan said the ground-breaking ruling from the court will serve as a precedent for future cases.
Praising the efforts of the officials he said, "The judicial department made my case an exception. I was told that from now on, in such cases, we have to put together a request letter, get it approved by the chief justice, and take it to the health authority for the issuance of a birth certificate."
He again went to court and this time, his case was approved. On April 14, a day before the Hindu festival of Vishu, the couple received their daughter's birth certificate.
