In the normal course of life, when two consenting adults decide to tie the knot, it is their own business (Editorial – “Choice & conversion”, August 18). But the Akhila/Hadiya episode does not seem to fit into this template. The Supreme Court is not so naive as to waste its precious time and energy in adjudicating a parent-daughter marital dispute. There are times when a disputed marriage case comes up that has a larger social and cultural context that is too palpable to be ignored by the judiciary. It is disingenuous to presume that when Hindus convert to other religions they are doing so voluntarily and when other religionists convert to Hinduism they are forced to do so.
It is significant that the Kerala police have been conducting an inquiry into cases that come under the so-called phenomenon of “love jihad”. The investigations are yet to be concluded. How can the Supreme Court ignore the larger context in Kerala from where many youths have left to join the Islamic State especially when the girl’s parents allege that their daughter has been radicalised by extremist religious indoctrination? The case has implications for Kerala’s communal harmony and for national security. Without prejudging the case, let us allow the National Investigation Agency to probe the conspiracy angle.
V.N. Mukundarajan,
Thiruvananthapuram
