Indian External Affairs Minister, Smt. Sushma Swaraj has recently ‘rescued’ two girls and brought them back to India based on Twitter conversations. Relatives of other Indians illegally detained in foreign lands, see a ray of hope in minister’s actions and want her intervention in bringing back their loved ones as well. In a recent incident, a 19-year-old Mumbaikar, Shri Piyush R Baria tweeted to the minister seeking her help in bringing back his father, who is illegally detained in Sharjah by his female employer. The employer is an Indian but lives in Sharjah.

His letter available in this tweet reads –

Date – October 16, 2017

To,

Mrs. Sushma Swaraj

Minister of External Affairs, India

Sub – Father held against his will by his employer in Sharjah, Dubai

Respected Ma’am,

I, Piyush R Baria (age 19), son of Raju Baria, Living in Santacruz East, Mumbai, am writing to you with an urgent appeal to rescue my father who has been illegally held by an employer in Sharjah, Dubai. I am writing this letter of my will and under no pressure from anyone.

My father worked as a house help in Mumbai and looked after this person’s home for over 15 years. She is settled in Dubai. She asked my father to visit her family in Dubai and got him a tourist visa. My father traveled to Sharjah on October 6, 2017, on flight #IX 251. The employer had promised my father that he could return when he wanted. However, the employer has now illegally held my father’s Passport and Visa and is refusing to allow him to return. My father has begged and pleaded with her on numerous occasions in the last three days but she refused to return his documents saying that she will only return his documents when she feels like it. We tried talking to her too but she says that she has paid money for his travel and visa, and thus will only send him when that is recovered or once she wants to. My father has very little money with him, is being forced to do odd and strenuous jobs for her, and is being given stale/little food to eat. He is put up in shared space with other similar workers, to our best knowledge and his movements are monitored. My father is scared and very distressed. My father is repeatedly requesting her to send him back but to no avail. He knows no one there. We have sent his details to the Embassy there but he is unable to get there during their working hours.

We are very worried for his safety and well-being. He is the only working member of our family. We will be grateful if you intervene and rescue my father. Please help and get my father safely to our home.

Thanking you and hoping for your support and action.

 

Piyush R Baria

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Now it’s time for all of us to see if minister really comes forward to help this poor family and show her concern for an Indian or all her previous rescue operations were only publicity stunts.

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Addition on 14th October

Due to increased pressure from Indian MRAs, the employer has released Raju Baria within three days publishing this story –