5-year-old Norwegian child should be returned to natural parents: Swaraj

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday said that the five-year-old child, who was taken away by the Norway government from an NRI family, should be returned to his 'natural parents'.

Taking to her Twitter handle, Swaraj said she refuses to accept that foster parents can take better care of the child than the natural parents.

"Our Ambassador in Norway is meeting the Norwegian authorities today reg Aryan. I refuse to accept that foster parents can take better care of the child than the natural parents. The foster parents are totally ignorant of the Indian culture and our food habits," Swaraj tweeted.

"We want restoration of Aryan to his natural parents. This is our firm stand and Indian Ambassador will convey this to the Norwegian authorities," she added.

Last week, the External Affairs Minister had sought a report from the Indian Ambassador in Norway after the Indian couple said that the Norwegian authorities had taken away their son Aryan, alleging that they had beaten him.

This is the third case since 2011 when a child has been taken away from their Indian-origin parents by the authorities in Norway on the grounds of abuse.

In 2011, a three-year-old and a one-year-old were separated from their parents, prompting the then UPA government to take up the issue with Norway.

The Norwegian court later allowed the children to be reunited with their parents.
In December 2012, an Indian couple was jailed on charges of ill treatment of their children.

They were sent to their grandparents in Hyderabad later.