As sad as it might sound, an Indian couple residing in Dubai tortured their mother by starvation and her weight drastically got reduced to 29 kgs before her death. The man's mother, flew to Dubai from India to take care of her granddaughter and the couple accused her of not looking after the little girl and starved her from June 2018 till death in October 2018.
The trial was ongoing in the Dubai court for a year and now the couple has been sentenced to 10 years in prison and deportation after their jail term. After the verdict was heard, the man's wife cried out in court screaming ''I did nothing, I did nothing,'' before being led away by the guards to prison.
The couple reside at the Al Ghusais residence in Al Nahda road, and their Indian neighbour testified in the court that she met the wife in the apartment building who told her that the elderly woman had come from India to look after their daughter.
The neighbour also testified that the wife complained about her mother-in-law for neglecting her daughter and wasn't changing the girl's nappies because of which the girl fell ill. The neighbour then found the mother-in-law in a miserable condition, as she looked extremely thin and had burn marks on her body.
"After a few days, I was in the laundry area when I saw the elderly woman looking miserable and pitiful. There were signs of burns on her body as she was wearing a sari. I asked her what happened but she refused to answer and left," said the neighbour.
She then reported the woman's condition to the apartment security guards. When the guards reached their home, they found the elderly woman sleeping on the floor with no mattress. When the guards asked the man why is she sleeping on the floor, the man stated that the woman is his mother and she doesn't like to sleep on the bed.
Right after that, an ambulance was called and the elderly woman was taken to the hospital for treatment. A paramedic testified in the court that the man didn't even walk his mother towards the ambulance and was just looking from afar when she was transferred to the vehicle.
''She was crying in pain. I asked her son what caused the burns and he said that she had poured hot water on herself. He didn't care about his mother and didn't even help us to carry her to the wheelchair. It was the neighbours who helped," said the paramedic.
The elderly woman, was sent to the Rashid Hospital and she died a month later in October 2018.
The forensic report states that the elderly woman, who was in her 50s, suffered multiple burns and broken bones due to sustained torture and physical assault. She was only 29 kgs when she arrived at the Rashid Hospital. The report confirmed that she had been starved, tortured and neglected for many months which ultimately led to her death. The verdict will be subject for appeal within 15 days.
