Dharavi torture: State body to decide custody of child

Menaka Thakur, the seven-year-old girl from Dharavi, who had been allegedly beaten up and branded by her stepmother, will be produced before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) at Dongri on Monday, where it will be decided who gets custody of her.

Menaka Thakur, the seven-year-old girl from Dharavi, who had been allegedly beaten up and branded by her stepmother, will be produced before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) at Dongri on Monday, where it will be decided who gets custody of her.

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The CWC will decide if Menaka is to be handed over to her grandparents who live in Bihar or whether she should be admitted to a childcare centre in the city. Menaka’s grandparents who have been looking after her ever since her mother’s death a few years ago, want custody of her. Menaka’s grandfather Sukhnandan Thakur came to the city from Muzaffarpur in Bihar on Thursday and will be present before the CWC on Monday.

DCP (zone 5) Dhananjay Kulkarni said, “Menaka has been in the children’s home ever since she was discharged from Sion hospital on Saturday. On Monday, the CWC will decide where she should be sent.”

Menaka’s stepmother Aarti Thakur was arrested by the Dharavi police for allegedly beating and branding the child for more than two months. Menaka’s father Sujith had brought her to the city from Muzzafarpur to get her educated in a school here. Aarti, however, made the child do all household chores and beat her up when she protested, said Dharavi police.