Savikalpa Thapa, Pune
A woman was found chained to a tree in Sindhudurg district, Maharashtra. She has been identified as Lalita Kayi (50) from the United States, living in Tamil Nadu as mentioned in her Aadhar card address.
Police have retrieved her Aadhar card, photocopy of her US passport and medical reports. It has come to notice that her US visa has expired and medical reports reveal that she is being treated for mental illness.
On Saturday evening, she was rescued by the Police after a shepherd, Pandurang Gavkar found her chained to a tree.
After her rescue, a police official said that the area where she was chained had received heavy rainfall and she has been tied and starving since an indefinite period. He had also stated that the woman was too weak to give any statement.
Initially, Lalita Kayi was taken to Sawantwadi Hospital post which she shifted to Oros Hospital, Sindhudurg and later to Goa Medicinal College for advanced treatment for her mental wellbeing.
Later, SP Saurab Agarwal said that a case has been filed against Lalita’s ex-husband, who is suspected to have tied her to the tree and left her to die. He said, “Based on the note written by the woman at the hospital, a case has been registered against her former husband on charges of attempted murder, act endangering life or personal safety of others and wrongful confinement under the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS),”
He added that Police are trying to confirm and verify the information stated by her in the note and the allegation against her husband of tying her to a tree in the forest in Sonurli, Maharashtra. In the note, she also revealed that she hadn’t eaten for 40 days.
An official said that Lalita was married to a man in Tamil Nadu and was residing in India since a decade. She was also residing in Goa for some time. The Police team in Tamil Nadu and Goa are trying to find her ex-husband and relatives.
Recently, a video of her is being circulated online. The video shows her being rescued from the forest and undergoing treatment in a hospital. She is also seen writing a note alleging her husband of tying her to a tree in the forest.