Indian PM asks Norwegian counterpart to find amicable solution to NRI kids custody row

Seoul (South Korea), Mar.27 (ANI): Visiting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked his Norwegian counterpart Jens Stoltenberg to find an "amicable and good" solution to the NRI kids custody row, especially with a focus on keeping the welfare of the children and the interest of the parents in mind".

Singh conveyed this message to Stoltenberg on Monday on the sidelines of the nuclear security summit being held here.

Singh reportedly explained to Stoltenberg the importance of family ties in Indian culture, and expressed the hope that the outcome would be positive and within the ambit of the law, besides being in the interest of the parents and their children.

Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai told media after the bilateral meeting: "The Norwegian Prime Minister also made a reference to the ongoing case relating to the two Indian children, and explained that this was the matter before the Municipality of Stavanger, as well as the local court, and that the interest of the children, as well as concerns of the parents, would sought to be addressed in whatever solution is found."

Abhigyan, three, and Aishwarya, one, were placed in foster care by the Norwegian child welfare authorities in May last year, and ever since, the battle for the release of the two kids has been going on.

In fact, External Affairs Minister S.M.Krishna had last month sent Secretary (West) M.Ganapathy to settle the matter. However, the custody row has taken a turn for the worse with the Norwegian authorities saying last week that they were not going to hand over the kids to their uncle in view of the "conflicts" in the family.

The statement followed reports of differences between the parents-Anurup and Sagarika Bhhatacharya.

The two prime ministers also reportedly discussed the impact of the Indian court verdicts on the 2G scam cases.

The future presence of Norwegian telecom giant Telenor, which has multi-billion dollar investments in India, hangs in the balance following the Supreme Court cancelling 122 telecom licences allegedly involved in the scam. By Naveen Kapoor (ANI)