Gujarat: 3 siblings, locked in room, rescued after 10 years
What's the story
Three siblings aged 30-42 were rescued from their room in Gujarat's Rajkot on Sunday after being locked for nearly a decade. According to the father, they had isolated themselves after their mother died from a long illness. Members of an NGO reportedly found the three siblings in a disheveled condition with the smell of human feces reeking across the room where they were locked.
Details
Siblings rescued from room in Kisanpara area
The three siblings were rescued from their room in the Kisanpara area of Rajkot on Sunday by members of the NGO Saathi Seva Group, The Times of India reported. The trio, two brothers and one sister, had reportedly withdrawn themselves from society completely nearly 10 years ago after their mother's death. The room was reeking of human feces and had uneaten food scattered around.
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'Siblings were in disheveled condition'
The NGO's Jalpa Patel told PTI, "The siblings, including brothers Amrish and Bhavesh and their sister Meghna, had locked themselves up in the room for nearly a decade, according to their father." Patel added, "The siblings were in a disheveled condition, with their hair and beards grown in long locks like those of mendicants. They were too feeble to properly stand up."
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NGO members got siblings cleaned, shaved
The NGO members rescued the three siblings from the room and got them cleaned and shaved. Patel said, "They may be like what their father says (that they are mentally ill), but they need treatment urgently." They are planning to shift the trio to a place where they can have access to better food and treatment. The family has been deliberating over their future.
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All 3 are well-educated, says father
The father—a retired government employee named Navin Mehta (80)—told PTI, "My eldest son Amrish, 42, was a practicing lawyer with BA, LLB degrees, while the younger daughter Meghna (39) is an MA in Psychology." "My youngest son is a BA in Economics and a promising cricket player," said Mehta, who lived in the same house and would leave food at the trio's doorstep daily.
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'People say some relatives did black magic'
"My wife started keeping ill in 1986. She died five-six years later, which affected my children deeply, following which they locked themselves up," Mehta went on to add, "People say some relatives did black magic on them."