Since the rescue of a mentally challenged mother and her twenty-month-old daughter from a flat in the city’s Segunbagicha on Sunday, many more mysterious stories have been coming to light regarding her family.
Police rescued 35-year old Ajmeri Supti alias Jessie and her minor girl in a state of near death caused by a lack of nutrition. Both have remained almost unfed for about a month since her husband went missing.
Jessie and her child, who had been residing in a rented flat on the fifth floor of a nine storied building, were placed in the custody of the Women Support and Investigation Centre at Tejgaon.
Although the girl is twenty months old, she has not been given any name as yet. She only wails for foods.
In response to questions from doctors and the police at the Women Support and Investigation Centre, Jessie said her daughter had not been given a name from fear that that would lead to her being killed.
Jessie was also heard saying that her husband had been kidnapped. She fears that she and her daughter might me killed as the family has a number of enemies, said police.
Dr Rahena Begum, a counselor at Dhaka Ahsania Mission, told The Daily Star that all the symptoms of schizophrenia could be spotted in the attitude of the woman.
Jessie and her husband Ashraf Guddu had been living an eerie existence in the flat with their minor girl for the past several months. They had the electricity connection snapped, creating an atmosphere of darkness by shutting all the doors, windows and even the ventilators of the flat.
A neighbour said they had been living in the house without, literally, any ray of light and had kept themselves detached from everyone else.
In these circumstances, Nasima Huq, owner of the flat from where the mother and child were rescued, earlier filed a general diary two and a half months ago over the mysterious lifestyle of her tenants.
Sub-inspector Lutfor Rahman of Ramna Police Station, said he had to enter the house by breaking through the door as the couple did not open it.
“I found the couple in a state of disarray. Their house was very dirty and covered with dust; television and other electronics goods were found trashed”, said SI Lutfor. He added, “We informed the Victim Support Centre for the sake of saving the lives of the mother and her minor girl.”
The SI also said husband Ashraf Guddu had been missing rather mysteriously since October 29.
Flat owner Nasima Huq told The Daily Star that Jessie and her husband Ashraf Guddu had hired the flat two years ago.
She said that Jessie’s widowed mother and three brothers and sisters lived in America. None of them have had any relations with Jessie since she, a Christian, married Guddu, who is a Muslim.
Nasima also said she had requested Guddu’s elder brother Arshad, a resident of Dhanmondi, to rescue his brother’s wife and daughter, but he refused to do anything in this regard.
“Arshad rather suggested that I realize my dues from Jessie’s bank account. He said that she had Tk 1.33 crore in her account”, said Nasima.
Officials at the Victim Support Centre said they could not admit the mother and her child in any hospital for treatment as they had been unable to find any of their relatives.
-With The Daily Star input
