Custody Battle Across Borders: A Family Torn

Seema Haider, a Pakistani woman, crossed illegally into India with her children to be with Sachin Meena, her online lover. Her first husband, Ghulam Haider, is seeking custody of the children with legal support. The case involves legal challenges, custody battles, and cultural changes.

In a cross-border custody drama, the first husband of Seema Haider, a Pakistani woman who illegally crossed into India with her four children in 2023 to join her lover, is seeking the intervention of the Indian government. Seema, now 32 and hailing from Jacobabad, Sindh, made headlines when she moved to India's Greater Noida area after meeting and marrying Indian national Sachin Meena.

Seema and Sachin, who connected via the online game PUBG in 2019, were arrested for illegal entry and harboring, respectively, but later bailed. Her former spouse, Ghulam Haider, living in Saudi Arabia, has not seen his children since, despite legal efforts spearheaded by human rights activist Ansar Burney and Indian lawyer Ali Momin.

Despite Haider's appeals and ongoing legal maneuvers since 2023, uncertainty clouds the case as Seema claims conversion to Hinduism for herself and her children, further complicating the custody fight. As tensions rise over the children's presence in India, Seema's declaration of expecting Sachin's child paints an even more tangled picture.

(With inputs from agencies.)