BSP MP Dhananjay Singh's house where the girl was found dead
Uttar Pradesh MP Dhananjay Singh's wife has been detained over the unexplained death of a domestic help at their residence. The woman had injuries on the head, chest, stomach and arms.
The police suspect the 35-year-old help, Rakhi, was tortured for months by the lawmaker's wife, Dr Jagriti Singh, a senior dentist at the government-run RML hospital. The woman reportedly died on Monday morning but Dhananjay Singh, an MP of Mayawati's BSP, informed the police several hours later, at around 8 pm. He has also been questioned.
"I got a call three days back from Jagriti that the maid was injured after she fell from the terrace. Yesterday evening, I again got a call saying she has died, I rushed back from my constituency Jaunpur and called the police," Mr Singh told reporters.
Police sources say the MP could not explain why the woman was not taken to the hospital when she fell three days ago.
The 38-year-old politician says he and his wife are going through a divorce and he stayed at a different house.
Other staff at the house have reportedly alleged that Jagriti Singh routinely beat her staff.
Another help, Ramphal, has also alleged that he was tortured. He is being medically examined.
An electrician, Azad, told the police that he had been beaten up by Jagriti Singh once when he made a house call. "She used to beat her help often. I was hit with slippers and kicked," he said.
This comes weeks after a 15-year-old girl was rescued from an upscale south Delhi home, semi-naked and bearing brutal marks of torture all over her body. Her employer, a 50-year-old executive who lived with her mother and dogs, was arrested.