Motive behind confining Candolim woman not yet known

the goan I networkrMAPUSA rrBut the physical condition of the woman, who was rescued by police from a small dingy room at Candolim, clearly bore the scars of immense distress. rSurprisingly, 24 hours after the woman was freed, neighbours of the Verlekar family at Anna-vaddo, Candolim, refused to speak about the family or the incident. r“We do not know what you are talking about. We don’t know the family…” came a stoic reply from a local in the area. Candolim Sarpanch Blaize Fernandes said he knew nothing about the family or their background. r“Sorry, I am not from that ward. I have no information about the family,” Fernandes said to The Goan. rRepeated calls made to the local panch of the area, Estella Mascarenhas, went unanswered. rFormer Calangute Sarpanch Joseph Sequeira said he knew one of the brothers who was employed in a senior position in a five-star hotel. r“The little that I know of them, they come from a good family background. The incident was a little disturbing,” Sequeira said. rSources informed that the Vernekar family is socially well connected and came from a well-heeled background. rThe huge ground plus first floor residential bungalow at Anna-vaddo, Candolim, bears testimony to the opulence. rAccording to a source, soon after the news about the incident broke on Tuesday evening, the family’s friends and neighbours were more worried about the social fallout for the family. rIf confining a person in such inhuman condition was horrific, the rescue of the woman by woman police and volunteers of the NGO, Bailancho Saad, was no less comfortable, as they had to conduct the rescue operation in very trying condition. r“The room was so filthy and with such a horrible stink that the police and our volunteers had to literally cover their noses with their duppattas,” said Sabina Martins, convener of Bailancho Saad. rThe key question on every one’s mind was the motive of the family to confine the woman in such manner. rMartins said she had come across a couple of cases where family members of a married woman, who disowned the in-laws and returned home, would confine the woman to avoid embarrassment. rShe also said that as per Goa’s Civil Code which entitles equal share of the property to girl and boy could also play an important role. rrPsychiatric evaluation found rwoman is fit, says IPHB rrrVictim’s brothers and their wives held for rwrongful confinement; obtain bail rrrthe goan I networkrPANAJI rDeepening the mystery around her solitary confinement, the woman rescued from Candolim underwent has been pronounced to be psychiatrically and physically fit by the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour and Goa Medical College and Hospital, Bambolim. rShe has been moved to the Provedoria shelter at Altinho in Panaji following her medical tests. rWomen’s Police Station Panaji sub-inspector Reema Naik, who is investigating the case, has stated that the test reports pronounced her as psychiatrically and physically fit to be placed in a shelter home at Provedoria, Altinho. rSunita Verlekar Shirodkar was rescued from extremely unhygienic conditions of a small room measuring three ft by two ft. “The room had one window, no bedding and no clothes. The victim was found naked. The door had a small opening on top from where food was provided to her,” PSI Naik informed. rThe ongoing probe has secured a copy of the mental health certificate issued to Sunita’s family by IBHB in 2008. The IPHB certificate stated that Sunita suffered from ‘​undifferentiated schizophrenia’. r“She was sent back home from Mumbai by her husband after she began to show symptoms of mental illness. Before that she was placed under the care of a private shelter home in Moira for two to three years. Her family then admitted her to GMC for some time before finally disowning and confining her in the room,” PSI Naik informed. rA rough estimation based on these records places the period of Sunita’s confinement between eight to nine years. rWomen’s Police Station on Wednesday arrested the victim’s brothers Ravindra and Mohandas Verlekar and their wives Amita and Anita for wrongfully confining her. The foursome, who have been booked under Section 343 and 346 of IPC, secured bail thereafter. rThe police and the Victims’ Assistance Unit visited Sunita at Altinho in order to record her statement. However, the doctors have advised the police to initiate this procedure only later in the week. “She spoke to us and told us that she was born in 1965. Medical tests put her age between 45 and 50 years,” PSI Naik said. rMeanwhile, Bailancho Saad, the NGO which brought the case to the notice of the cops through a letter signed by an intern, has refused to formally lodge the complaint. The case was booked in the name of rthe State.