TV actress beats and burns maid

The police nabbed a television actress here on Saturday after she beat and burnt her 10-year-old maid because the child had been "caught eating", an official said

The actress, Urvashi Dhanorkar, has been accused of brutally assaulting 10-year-old Rameshwari, locking up the child at home and employing a minor as a labourer, said a duty officer of Amboli police station in Andheri west.

"The victim has been sent for a medical check-up and we are awaiting the reports," he said.

The officer said Rameshwari was brought to Mumbai from Amravati last April on the pretext that she would be given an education. However, she was forced to work as a maid in Urvashi's home in the posh Royal Palms Complex in Versova.

A week ago, Urvashi reportedly caught Rameshwari eating. The actress banged the child's head against a wall and burnt her arms, he added.

Thereafter, Rameshwari was confined at home and allowed outside only a couple of days ago. Some neighbours and social activists noticed the physical abuse she had undergone and took her to the police.

Rameshwari told reporters that she was never given sufficient food and had been physically abused and tortured repeatedly in the past few months.

Urvashi was produced before a magistrate in Bandra Saturday afternoon and bailed out after posting a Rs.10,000 surety, the officer added.

This is the third instance of abuse of a domestic help in Andheri region in the past three months.

Actor Shiney Ahuja was nabbed for raping his maid servant in his Versova home in June. In July, three activists of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) were nabbed for gang-raping a minor domestic help in a garden in Andheri east.