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The shade of Tulasa seeks justice

Kanchana Suggu

Justice may be delayed but Bir Dhoj Thapa hopes he still won't be denied it.

Thapa is coming from Nepal tomorrow to try to ensure that those who sold to brothels his daughter Tulasa, finally led to her death of tuberculosis, don't go unpunished.

Tulasa, 13, was abducted from her home town in Nepal and inducted into Bombay's flesh trade in 1982. She was resold to three brothels in the city within a one year.

Finally, her case came to the notice was noticed by Dr I S Gilada, secretary-general of People's Health Organisation, then called the Indian Health Organisation. Gilada informed the police and Tulasa was rescued.

In the First Information Report recorded on December 6, 1982, Tulasa had named 32 people responsible for abducting her and selling her to different brothels. These included taximen, the abductors and the brothel-owners. She also named three other Nepali men, Kancha Sarkhi, Lal Bahadur Kani and Uttam Kumar Pariyar, whom the Nepal government had arrested and finally sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment.

Out of the 32 people arrested by Bombay police, seven were chargesheeted but released due to a lack of evidence.

"They were lucky because Tulasa, along with her father, moved to Nepal and were not available for the court hearings. This gave the accused an advantage," says Dr Gilada.

"I was one of those pursuing the case. But after Tulasa's father comes to town, we will have a good case against the accused," says Dr Gilada.

Tulasa had a bad time even after her return to Nepal. Her stepmother refused to let the girl in and issued an ultimatum to her father. Depressed, finally Thapa send Tulasa to the Nepal Blind and Disabled People's Association in 1985. She stayed there for 10 years, getting cured of sexually transmitted disease and the tuberculosis she acquired while in Bombay.

In 1995, apparently cured, she left the home. But she had a relapse of the tuberculosis and finally died of it.

"It is unfortunate that when Nepal government has already punished the guilty, their Indian counterpart are roaming freely," says Dr Gilada.

Now, the case has been reopened, giving Tulasa's father a chance to identify some of the accused. But of the seven people chargesheeted, only two are still around, the others having either died or disappeared.

On December 24 and January 10, the court had directed the government to produce evidence, but the prosecution had not complied. The court once again directed the government to produce evidence and the hearing is to resume on January 27.

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