Union Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj on Friday promised to bring back a Hyderabad-native woman who was allegedly being tortured in Pakistan by her husband and in-laws.
“She is India’s daughter. If ticket is a problem, we will provide the ticket to Mohammadi Begum for her return from Pakistan,” Swaraj said on Twitter, while sharing a news report on the issue.
The minister was responding to an appeal made by Hajra Begum and her husband, Mohammed Akbar, who have been trying to rescue their daughter, 45-year-old Mohammadia Begum, for close to a year.
Just days ago, the couple had put up a video appeal on YouTube, hoping to get the minister's attention.
"We are residents of Errakunta. It has been so many days since my daughter left, but they are not sending her back. Her visa has also arrived, but still they are not willing to send her home," Akbar said in the video appeal.
"She is very worried and has fallen sick. She wants to return home to us. The husband also beats her and doesn't give her food on time. I request Sushma Swaraj, to please help us out and send our girl back," he added.
"Sushma Swaraj ji. My daughter is in great distress. Please take some action and get my daughter back. She is India's daughter, stuck in Pakistan. Please help us with the ticket," Begum said in the video.
Background
When 23-year-old Mohammadia Begum, a resident of Hyderabad, was married off to Mohammed Younis, a mechanic in Muscat in 1996, little did she realise that her life was going to take a turn for the worse.
"At the time, Younis kept telling us that he lived in Muscat, worked in Muscat, and was an Omani national. We made the mistake of believing him," Akbar had told TNM earlier this year.
The 'nikah' was performed over telephone through an agent and Begum joined Younis in Muscat. After 12 years of marriage, Begum got a shock when Younis, who had lost his job, disclosed that he was a Pakistani.
By then, they already had four kids – two sons and two daughters.
Following this, the parents alleged that Begum was taken to Lahore, where she was being tortured since she expressed her wish to return home to Hyderabad.
Watch her parent's earlier video appeal below.