Retired railway employee dies, daughter found starving after 5 years of captivity, torture in UP’s Mahoba

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A shocking case has emerged from Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba district, where a retired railway employee and his mentally challenged daughter were allegedly confined and tortured by their caretakers for five years, leading to the man’s death, NDTV reported.

The victim, 70-year-old retired senior railway clerk Omprakash Singh Rathore, had been living with his 27-year-old daughter Rashmi—who is mentally challenged— in a separate house following the death of his wife in 2016. Omprakash’s brother, Amar Singh, was quoted by the news channel as saying that the family had hired Ram Prakash Kushwaha and his wife Ramdevi to look after them.

Amar alleged that the caretaker couple gradually took control of the entire house, forcing Omprakash and his daughter to live only in the ground-floor rooms while they occupied the upper floor. The victims were, as per the report, denied even basic necessities.

"Whenever relatives came to visit, the servant would make excuses and send them away, saying that Omprakash didn't want to meet anyone," Amar told the news channel.

When the family was informed of Omprakash’s death on Monday, they rushed to the house and were confronted with a disturbing sight. Omprakash’s body appeared severely emaciated, and Rashmi was found naked in a dark room.

Relatives alleged that Rashmi’s condition resembled that of an elderly woman due to prolonged starvation. "There was no flesh left on her body; only a skeletal frame remained, barely clinging to life," said Pushpa Singh Rathore, a relative.

Doctors declared Omprakash dead on arrival at the hospital, after which police took custody of the body and sent it for a post-mortem examination.

As per the report, the family is now caring for Rashmi and has demanded the harshest punishment for those responsible.