The government of United Arab Emirates, probably for the first time, setting aside the country’s marriage rules for expatriates during the Year of Tolerance has given a birth certificate to a nine-month-old girl who was born to an Indian Hindu father and a Muslim mother.
According to marriage rules for expatriates in UAE, a Muslim man can get married to a non-Muslim woman but a Muslim woman is not allowed to marry a non-Muslim man.
Kiran Babu, the Sharjah-based expat, and Sanam Saboo Siddique, who got married in Kerala in 2016, gone through an unusual situation when their daughter was born in July 2018, the Khaleej Times reported.
“I have an Abu Dhabi visa. I get my insurance coverage there and got my wife admitted to Medeor 24X7 Hospital in the emirate. But after the baby’s delivery, the birth certificate was rejected as I am a Hindu,” Babu said. “I, then applied for a no-objection certificate through the court. The trial went on for four months but my case was rejected,” he added. Babu said that since his daughter had no legal documents, he 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. Test Tube Baby to Get Birth Certificate, but Slot for Father’s Name to Be Kept Blank.
Babu said that Indian Embassy counselor M. Rajamurugan supported them throughout the process. “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 said.
Babu once again went to court and, this time, his case was approved and the coup,e was given the birth certificate of their daughter Anamta Aceline Kiran on April 14.
“I am told that this is the first case where the rule has been amended,” he said. Rajamurugan said the ground-breaking ruling from the court will serve as a precedent for future cases.
