Porni Banerjee | ২৯ জুলাই ২০২৪ ১৬ : ৫৭Porni Banerjee

A 50-year-old woman was found tied to a tree with an iron chain at a forest in Maharashtra’s Sindhudurg district.

Police have also retrieved a photocopy of her US passport as well as other documents, including an Aadhaar card with a Tamil Nadu address, a police official said today.

A shepherd was the first to have discovered her Saturday evening in Sonurli village at Sindhudurg and later alerted police after finding her chained and in distress, the official said.

Police identified the woman as Lalita Kayi Kumar S, who has been residing in Tamil Nadu and is originally from the US. Police suspect that she was chained by her husband in the forest following a personal dispute.

“The woman was taken to a hospital in Sawantwadi (in the state"s Konkan region) and then Oros in Sindhudurg. Considering her mental and health condition, she was moved to Goa Medical College for advanced treatment. She is out of danger. Doctors treating her said she suffers from psychiatric problems. We have found medical prescriptions in her possession,” the official informed.

“We found her Aadhaar card with a Tamil Nadu address and a photocopy of her United States of America passport. She has been identified as Lalita Kayi. Her visa has expired. We are getting all these documents verified to ascertain her nationality. Police is also in touch with the Foreigners Regional Registration office,” he added.

The doctors treating her said that she seemed to be suffering from psychiatric problems and addressed her problems to them by writing about her health concerns on paper.

As per initial information by the police, the woman has been living in India for the last ten years.

A Maharashtra police also said that although no FIR has been lodged yet, a probe regarding the matter has been initiated, the official said.

“The woman is not in a position to give her statement. The woman is weak as she has not eaten anything for a couple of days and also as the area experienced heavy rains. We don"t know for how long she was tied to that tree. We believe her husband, who hails from Tamil Nadu, tied her there and fled,” he said.

##police##aajkaalonline##maharashtra