Zeenews Bureau
New Delhi: The bizarre story of the two Indian children being kept in ‘protective’ care by Norwegian authorities appears headed for more drama after India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MoEA) sought details about the case from its Mission in Oslo, reports said on Wednesday.
The MoEA has asked for details about the visa status of the two children - three-year-old Abhigyan and one-year-old Aishwarya – amid reports claiming that Norwegian authorities have sent a letter to their parents asking them if they can give their consent to the children to settle in Norway.
The children were taken under protective care in May last year by Barnevarne, the Norwegian Child Welfare Services, on the ground of “emotional disconnect” with the parents, and placed them in foster parental care according to a local Norwegian court’s directive.
As per reports, child welfare authorities in the Scandinavian country have applied for short-term resident permit for the children without the consent of their parents, Anurup and Sagarika Bhattacharyya.
The move came after the parents made it clear that they would seek an extension of their children’s visa which expires on March 8.
The parents told a news channel that they have received a letter seeking their consent for their children to continue living in Norway, also, if they were to decide in the negative then they were asked to furnish an explanation for the same.
The distraught parents had an emotional re-union with their kids on Feb 17 and hoped that the family’s suffering will end soon, months after the issue triggered a diplomatic row.
Officially, the child welfare department has said that they will take a decision by early March on whether the custody of the two children can be awarded to their uncle after which an arrangement will be put in place to take care of their needs back home.
