Silvester D'Souza
Daijiworld Media Network – Kundapur (EP)

Kundapur, Aug 22: In a shocking incident, the district president of Anganwadi workers' association, Udupi was on Monday August 21 allegedly assaulted by her in-laws here. She sustained serious injuries due to the assault and got herself admitted to the Kundapur government hospital for treatment.

It is learnt that Usha, a widow, had continued to stay in her husband Raviraj Naika's house on Ramamandira road after his demise in 2011. Her young son too stayed with her. It is alleged that after her husband's demise, Usha's in-laws starting harassing her. Despite the harassment, Usha continued her work and had recently taken up census work, for which she used to go out of the house every day at 4.30 pm.

On Monday night, her in-laws reportedly picked a fight with her after she returned home from census work, saying she should no longer stay in the house and that she was no more a part of the family. Thereafter, family members namely Nagaraja Naika, Mahesh Naika, Sharada, Savithri and Vinay allegedly assaulted her.

Usha said that her in-laws harassed her repeatedly and that she had no other place to go. Besides, she had to look after the education of her child.

Usha is also the vice-president of the committee on prevention of woman and child trafficking.

Several women visited her in the hospital to boost her morale. They urged strict legal action against the assaulters.

Gunarathna, president of prevention of woman and children trafficking committee strongly condemned the incident. She said that there was a women's police station in Kundapur in the past but it was later shifted to Udupi. "The assurance of starting a separate women's police station in Kundapur is yet to be fulfilled," she said.

A case has been registered in Kundapur police station.