3 years on, Bengaluru man still waits to get daughter’s custody

PATNA: A 56-year-old Bengaluru man, Ramesh G Murthy, has been running from pillar to post for the last three years to get the custody of his three-year-old daughter, Bhavitha Murthy, who was “illegally” taken away to Bhagalpur by his in-laws within a month of her birth. Murthy’s wife Mridula Lata had died just 11 days after giving birth to the child through in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Acting on a Supreme Court directive, the Bhagalpur family court of principal judge Shiv Gopal Mishra had asked Bhagalpur SSP Manoj Kumar on June 12 this year to ensure immediate interim custody of the girl to Murthy under Guardian and Ward Act, 1890.However, before the Bhagalpur could act on the order of the court, Murthy’s in-laws, who live in Tilka Manjhi Colony locality, fled with the child. Murthy lives in a joint family and owns a consultancy firm dealing with deep underground constructions in Bengaluru. At the time of the birth of the child, he used to live in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
Murthy alleged that his in-laws have strong connection with a senior Congress MLA from Bihar, who allegedly exerted pressure on police not to take any action against them. He said his two petitions were earlier dismissed by the Allahabad high court, following which he moved Supreme Court which ordered the Bhagalpur family court in March this year to dispose of the case without further delay.
Murthy said he fell in love with Mridula Lata in 2003 when both were working in Noida. Mridula’s age was around 34 years at that time. “We got married next year, but due to some complications, she gave birth to the girl child at a private hospital in Noida on May 19, 2014, almost a decade after our marriage, through IVF,” Murthy said, adding Mridula died just 11 days after the child’s birth.
He said Mridula’s family members admitted her to the private hospital much before the due date suggested by the doctors when he was away from Noida. “Mridula was shifted to another hospital within hours of giving birth to the child, but she could not survive due to internal bleeding,” Murthy added. “It was during this period that my mother-in-law Geeta Devi took my daughter to her son Vibash Surya’s house, who also lived in Noida. Later I came to know that Geeta and others had already fled to Bhagalpur with my daughter,” Murthy said, adding he immediately reported the matter to Indrapuram police on June 23, 2014.
He said due to their political connection, the police registered the FIR on July 2, 2014, while Geeta filed a case of dowry atrocity and murder against him with Tilka Manjhi police station on July 1, 2014 through a SDJM court in Bhagalpur.
“I came to know about the complaint case last year when the matter came up for hearing in a Bhagalpur family court,” he said adding in all these years, he could meet his daughter only for few hours on two different occasions. “Before fleeing with my daughter, they also took away Mridula’s jewellery, property documents and cash from my house,” he alleged.
SHO of Tilka Manjhi police station Sanjay Satyarthi said Geeta’s husband Prabhas Singh has already been arrested in connection with the case. Bhagalpur SSP Manoj Kumar said efforts were on to arrest other accused in-laws of Murthy and hand over the child to her father.