Gulf sponsor harasses Indian maid

She was repeatedly beaten with a wooden broom handle and her head banged against a wall.

An Indian maid ran away from her sponsor's house in Bahrain after being repeatedly beaten and abused.

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Indira Yenked Subbaiah, 35, claimed her ordeal started soon after she arrived in January to work for the family for a monthly salary of 40 Bahraini Dinars (BD), reports have said.

"I was repeatedly beaten with a wooden broom handle and my head was banged against a wall," Indira said.

The Indian maid also alleged that she was fed only dried bread and had not been paid for three months. However, the sponsor's two children aged five and nine, took pity on her and helped her with food.

Finally, on August 30, Indira left her sponsor's house and ran away.

She was taken to the Indian Embassy Thursday, after being sheltered for a week by a Bangladeshi couple, who found her weeping on the streets.

Later, volunteers of the Migrant Workers Protection Society (MWPS) took her to the Isa Town police station in Manama for a meeting with the sponsor.

The sponsor denied that he assaulted her, but admitted not paying her wages for three months.

He agreed to get her an air ticket with the money he owed her.