HYDERABAD: Many of the women who turned for help to Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan are still left with empty hands as no fruitful outcome has emerged so far after the Mahila Darbar that was organised on July 18 at the Raj Bhavan. There has been no progress in my case,” said Jayanthi, whose case received special attention by the media and the Governor herself who asked the legal counsellors present at the Darbar to hand over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Jayanthi’s daughter, K Anusha, was kidnapped in October, 2021.
Not my job, says lawyer
“The lawyer who gave legal advice during the Mahila Darbar had agreed to hand over the case to the CBI. However, there has been no response from the lawyer since then. I called the lawyer after two days. She told me to call the Governor’s office as she does not have any relation to my case now,” said Jayanthi. A fear that her daughter has already crossed the borders of the State makes her anxious. I want to participate in the next Darbar as well,” she added.
Other women are facing more or less the same situation. Reshma Begum attended the Darbar seeking justice against her husband who had kicked her out of the house for not fulfilling his demands of dowry.
“We didn’t receive any counselling that day as we didn’t have some documents including the summons of the court, chargesheet and details of the court sessions. The counsellors told us to get free lawyers from the government,” said Sara, Reshma’s sister-in-law.
A woman, who is a lawyer herself, was one of the victims. In spite of the court’s orders, her husband took her daughter away. The counsellors in Mahila Darbar told her that they will follow the case and call her regarding the same. The woman is still waiting for the promised call.
Shilpa (name changed) was provided with the number of a lawyer who could take her case and get her justice against her abusive husband. The same lawyer was invited to the Darbar by the Hyderabad District Legal Service Authority to provide assistance to women.
“We were just told to give legal solutions to the problems of women. Most of the women there already had filed a case in the High Court or police station. We just told them what they should do further,” said the lawyer. No follow-up session has been arranged so far for these women.