Omtzigt asks parliamentary questions about kidnapped Insiya just before President India's state visit

Pieter Omtzigt has asked parliamentary questions about Insiya, who was kidnapped in 2016. Her father, Shehzad Hemani, had his daughter kidnapped in 2016 and took her to India, where she still resides, against her mother's will. The questions come at a precarious moment: the Netherlands will receive the Indian president next week.

A year and a half ago, Hemani was sentenced in absentia to nine years in prison for having the girl kidnapped from her grandmother's home in Watergraafsmeer and taken to India illegally. A cousin of Hemani was sentenced to four years in prison for involvement, but he fled abroad.

“The kidnapping was violent and unheard of,” the judge said at the time. “A family life has been destroyed. The effects are difficult to measure. For Insiya's mother, it is a never-ending grieving process. Insiya is also separated from the rest of her family.” India has been asked to extradite Hemani, but has so far refused to do so.

Since Insiya has been in India, her father has stopped contacting her mother Nadia Rashid . The girl's parents were divorced before the kidnapping and had a conflict about parental authority. After the kidnapping, Rashid saw her daughter only a few times via Skype.

State visit

Pieter Omtzigt (Omtzigt Group) asks the parliamentary questions at a precarious moment. Ram Nath Kovind, the president of India, is coming to the Netherlands next week for a state visit. The Dutch politician wants to know about the girl's return and asks that the matter be brought to the attention during the state visit. Omtzigt also wants to know why the father is 'not on the Interpol list'.

.