An American woman who went to India a decade ago to study yoga and meditation has claimed she survived without food and water for 40 days after being shackled to a tree by her former husband.
U.S. citizen Lalita Kayi Kumar, 50, was found starving and emaciated on Saturday by a local shepherd in a remote forest in the Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra about 25 miles from Goa, according to reports.
The shepherd broke an iron chain that was used to secure her to the tree. Police said she was severely dehydrated and unable to speak.
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Officers said Kumar met and married an Indian man while studying yoga in Tamil Nadu, the same province in southeast India where Kamala Harris’ grandfather comes from. The couple reportedly fell out and the ex-husband has now been charged with attempted murder.
According to the Indian Express, the police case is based on a letter written by the American woman, who has not yet talked about her ordeal.
“Injection for extreme psychosis which causes severe locked jaw and inability to drink any water. Need intravenous food… 40 days without food in forest—husband tied me to a tree in a forest and said I would die there,” the note read.
Police are said to be skeptical that Kumar could have survived for 40 days without food or water.
“When we discovered her, she was seriously dehydrated. It appears that she was stuck there for a minimum of 48 hours. Although she was mute,” said Amol Chavan, an inspector at Sawantwadi Police Station.
“She is currently not in a position to talk. We are trying to get more details about her background,” said Saurabh Agarwal, superintendent of police in Sindhudurg, the area where she was found.
Kumar had her U.S. passport with her when she was found along with various personal belongings, including an identity card with a Tamil Nadu address. She is said to be out of danger but suffering from psychiatric issues.
Police said she had been living in India for at least 10 years and that her visa had expired.
