Case Study - 1 - Krithika fights her mother !

This is a story of a Case that came to Samatha Vedike long ago. It is an unusual case as Krithika (Name changed) is legally fighting against her mother who ill treated her, after her father’s death.

Krithika is around 35 to 40 now. She lost her father when she was 12 years old. She reminiscences if her father was alive, her life would have been different. Her father was a Ward Boy in the Government Hospital. After her father’s death, her uneducated mother not only got pension but also husband’s job. When father was alive, her elder sister was married to her own maternal uncle. After her father’s death her elder brothers were sent to hostel for studies. The younger brothers stayed with mother and went to school. Krithika’s schooling was stopped and she was sent to do domestic work in people’s house.

Due to her father’s death, her mother got lot of benefits, also having obtained a steady job led to bad habits. Meanwhile her elder sister left her husband and started living with them. Also mother’s younger brother, a police constable started frequenting their house and became her sister’s lover. In this way the trio (her mother, sister and the constable) started drinking together and were involved in some illicit business. Krithika would do all the household chores and also cook and serve food and drinks to the trio. She was harassed by them and the constable started eyeing her.

Once her sister and the constable poured kerosene on her as she refused the advances of the constable. So she ran outside. The area elders intervened and she returned. Later she overheard the trio conspiring to break her leg to keep her home bound to do the chores of the house. Mother and sister beat her up and even forced her to consume poison as she did not agree to the illicit relation with constable. Krithika decided to lodge a police complaint on the trio however, the constable intervened.

When she was harassed again, she decided to escape. She ran away from the house and spent 2 nights hiding in bus shelter and behind trees etc. During this time, she landed in her teacher’s house. The teacher in turn put her in a working lady’s house (whose husband was in foreign country). Her duties: to help lady with household work, care for her children. In return she got protection and was helped to study and privately pass SSLC. Even today Krithika refers to the lady as her mother. 
In the year 1998, she came to Samatha and on our advice decided to put a case on mother. The court awarded Rs. 300/month as maintenance. Unhappy with this, she decided to pursue her case for higher maintenance. Meantime she continued to learn tailoring, screen printing etc. In the year, 2004 she rented a house and started taking up small jobs. In year 2007 unhappy, changed her lawyer and this time was awarded Rs. 600/month as maintenance.

Since her mother wasn’t giving her the awarded maintenance, she pursued the case in High Court. In 2015, she was awarded Rs. 3000/ month, which her mother has to pay to the court by 10^th of every month failing which her mother would be arrested. This should be continued till her mother gets her married.

Due to procedural delays, this payment too just started few months ago. Now she is awaiting the arrears.

Many times she expresses her anger towards the system, which was unhelpful, & delayed justice. She expresses her gratefulness in coming into contact with the right people at a time when she was on the streets.

 - Roopa Rao     

Member, Samatha Vedike, Mysore