Guwahati: A celebrity doctor couple in Assam capital Guwahati has been detained for allegedly assaulting their minor adopted daughter, officials said on Saturday. The accused identified as Dr. Waliul Islam and Dr. Sangeeta Dutta were detained by the Paltan Bazar police on Friday night, a police official said. Police have handed over the victim to the authorities.
The couple's caretaker was also detained and questioned in connection with the incident. The doctors are accused to have tied the 5-year-old adopted daughter to the roof of their house near Ulubari in Guwahati and tortured her under the glaring sun for several days. The neighbors witnessed the incident and reported it to child rights activists and the Child Protection Commission.
A police official said that following the complaint, they swung into action and detained the couple. While Dr Waliul Islam was formally arrested, Dr Sangeeta is expected to be arrested today. Child rights activist Miguel Das Queah revealed the details about the incident on social media. In a Facebook post, Das wrote, “Finally the dangerous doctor couple Dr. Waliul Islam and Dr. Sangeeta Duttas cruelty has been taken notice of by Guwahati Police”.
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Das said that he had been receiving complaints about the “horrid doctor couple who regularly tied their little daughter (who is supposedly adopted) on their terrace in the blaring summer heat”. “This little 5 year old girl child also has bruise marks all over their body. I had requested the witnesses to file a complaint but no one was willing to as they were scared, till finally today someone had the courage to call up the Police. (Kudos to the person who called the Police),” he said.
Das said he had requested the Kamrup Metro Child Welfare Committee on the matter weeks back, urging them to conduct a welfare check. “This doctor couple Dr. Waliul Islam and Dr. Sangeeta Dutta hobnob with the rich and the powerful and therefore they thought that they are beyond the purview of the law. I request the Assam Police to check the bruises, talk with the teachers, talk with the neighbours and most importantly check the adoption documents,” Das said.
The child should immediately be pulled out of that abusive environment. It seems this Dr. Waliul has another illegally adopted girl child from a previous marriage, who he has abandoned,” he added. In a separate post, Das said that the girl child has injury marks on her buttocks. “And Dr. Sangeeta Datta has the guts to release dramatic video statements on social media. You deserve jail-time. And both of you were very much in town on the 11th of March 2023, when the child was first time spotted on the terrace, tied up, almost in a state of dehydration. She could've died, you morons,” he said.
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Dr. Sangeeta Dutta is a leading psychiatrist in Guwahati. She is often seen as a psychiatric counselor on Assamese television channels. Her husband, Dr. Waliul, is a surgeon. They are a celebrity doctor couple on social media also. Meanwhile, Dr. Waliul Islam is said to have allegedly attempted to commit suicide by taking pills at night after being detained by Paltan Bazar police for allegedly torturing his stepdaughter.
Dr. Waliul was taken to Guwahati Medical College Hospital by Paltan Bazar police where he is said to be stable.
