VIJAYAWADA: A 22-year-old woman, who was facing mental and physical torture at the hands of her employer and Kuwait police, from Kanuru village was rescued and finally reunited with her family, all thanks to the Spandana programme. The rescued woman, Katuri Renuka, accompanied by her elder sister Maddala Santhi, thanked police commissioner Ch Dwaraka Tirumala Rao at his office in Vijayawada on Monday for giving her a new lease of life.
Renuka, after losing her parents to a road accident at the tender age of 10, was raised by Santhi. In order to reduce the burden on her sister and save money for her marriage, Renuka was advised by her friends to go to Kuwait so that she could earn more money. So she approached a travel agent who promised her a job that would pay her a salary of Rs 30,000 and free accommodation in the West Asian country.
However, a few months after joining as a housemaid, the house owner filed a complaint with Kuwait police against her when she accidentally injured his daughter while saving her from falling down from a table. When Renuka did not get in touch with Santhi for over a month, the worried sister lodged a complaint with the Penamaluru police.
“With the help of agents, I came to know that she was being tortured by the Kuwait police. Though she tried to help the kid, the family misunderstood and lodged a complaint against her. She was arrested and not given food for a week. A month later, I came to know about her plight, when she called and explained her situation to me,” Santhi said.
“I approached the agent and asked him to bring her back. The agent, however, asked me pay Rs 2 lakh towards fine and flight tickets. With the help of MLA K Parthasarathi, I lodged a Spandana complaint on September 9 and, two weeks later, Renuka returned home safe. I never thought I would see her again as the rules in Kuwait are strict and horrible. We are indebted to CM Jagan and the police,” she added.
Speaking to TNIE, police commissioner Ch Dwaraka Tirumala Rao said the case was entrusted to an ACP-rank officer of the Commissioner’s Task Force (CTF) wing and was instructed to bring the girl back to country at any cost. “By creating an interface with the help of travel agents, we convinced the Kuwait police to send her back. Spandana has brought smiles to Santhi’s family.”