"A MONSTROUS THING.”

Taranaki Daily News, 19 May 1922, Page 2

"A MONSTROUS THING.”

■ DIVORCEE ARRESTED AND DETAINED. COURT ORDERS HER RELEASE. The divorce action Salaman. v. Salaman (involving an Indian and his European wife) claimed more than the usual amount of attention in the Courts recently, because a bitterly contested point between the parties was the custody of the child, Ayesha Salaman, daughter of the parties. A sequel to the action, which drew strong comment from the Chief Justice, was dealt with in the Supreme Court at Wellington this week.

When recently Mr. Justice Hosking in the Supreme Court granted Abraham’Salaman a writ of habaeus corpus in respect to his daughter, Ayesha Salaman, it seemed as though finality had been reached in a ease which had receivd some prominence. Salaman is an Indian and his wife (from whom he is now divorced) is a European. The Court’s order granting Salaman custody of Ayesha stipulated that Mrs. Salaman must remain in Wellington. Yesterday, in the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice (Sir Robert Stout) heard an appeal 'by Mrs. Salaman against her arrest and detention, of which procedure the Chief Justice expressed himself in terms of strong condemnation. Mr. E. G. Jellicoe appeared for Mrs. Salaman, and Mr. W. E. Leicester for Salaman.

Mrs. Salaman’s affidavit stated that in pursuance of the writ of habaeus corpus, she had met Salaman at Mr. Leicester’s office, and had urged him to come to some arrangement regarding the child’s future, but Salaman ha£ refused to discuss it with her and had threatened her arrest. She promised Mr. Leicester to bring Ayesha to his office in the morning, but the girl clung to her and cried so piteously that she made up her mind to take her to Auckland, and there make surrender of her to the father. On May 10 she left for Auckland, SaJaman travelling in the same train. On arrival she was met by detectives, who authorised her to take the girl to the wife of the Chinese interpreter, and stated that they would call for her (Ayesha) when the father was ready. As no one called she took the child to the father’s residence at Khyber Pass, where at 7 p.m. she delivered the child to him. As the child screamed when she was about to take leave of her, Mrs. Salaman asked her husband (from whom she was divorced) to let her stay with her for the night. He agreed, and gave them a bedroom upstairs, where, on the following morning, before she was out of bed, the detectives arrested her on a warrant issued by the Court at Wellington at the instance of the father. Mrs. Salaman further stated that she wa« brought to Wellington under arrest, and on May 13 she was cast into Point Halswei] Prison, refused bail, and was still held there under the warrant. Mr. Leicester, for the husband; said that it was incorrect to say that Salaman refused to see Mrs. Salaman or that he said he would have her arrested. Mr. Leicester said he had casually met Mrs. Salaman on Taumarunui railway station, and warned her that she was guilty of contempt of the Court’s order that she remain in Wellington. Mrs. Salaman told Trim of her intention to hand the child over to the father herself. The deputy-sheriff’s officer at Auckland gave evidence that he had taken the mother and child to the police station-. he had made other arrangements for the child afterwards. Sir Robert Stout: That was a monstrous thing to do. You had no right to arrest this person; it was a monstrous thing to arrest the woman and put her in prison. Mr. Jellicoe: Who told you to take the child to prison? Witness: No-body. It was my suggestion. The father did not object to my taking the child to prison. His Honor: I think it was an unnecessarily harsh proceeding. Mrs. Salaman was ordered to be released from custody, with £2 2s costs against Salaman.