The father of a Gujarat woman alleged to have been placed under illegal surveillance by the Gujarat Police released a letter on Tuesday, telling the National Commission for Women that his daughter did not wish for an investigation into the politically charged controversy and claiming that the operation was mounted with her consent.
“My daughter is fully aware of all help that was rendered by the state machinery,” Pran Lal Soni’s letter states. “She is fully conscious that the said help was absolutely necessary, in her own interest, safety and security.”
Mr. Soni earlier released a letter to the media, saying he had requested Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to put surveillance in place for his daughter’s safety. “I am deeply shocked by and pained at the developments over the past few days, in which purely personal and family issues pertaining to my daughter are being publicly raised in the media by certain vested interests.”
He claims to be writing on his daughter’s behalf to protect her anonymity. She was disturbed “by the intrusion into her personal life and privacy,” he said.
However, NCW officials told The Hindu that they had not received any letter until close of business. “Some television channels are saying this letter has been sent to us,” NCW member Nirmala Samant Prabhvalkar said, “but we have received neither written nor verbal communication from the woman or her father.”
NCW Chairperson Mamta Sharma, who is contesting the Rajasthan Assembly elections as a Congress candidate from Bundi, told The Hindu that she had not received any communication.
The woman, whose identity The Hindu is withholding, could not be contacted for comment.
