Starving woman dies after rescue

NEW DELHI: A 25-year-old woman confined at her home in Rajapuri, southwest Delhi, was rescued on Monday morning but died within hours. Police suspect the serious infections on her body caused her death. They have ruled out foul play.
The woman, Neha, was rescued from house number E-1 near Dabri after neighbours complained of a foul smell coming from her room.Police, along with a CATS team, tried to rescue her. She tried to stop the cops from opening the gate.
Pushpa Sharma, who stayed on the floor above her, said the woman had bought the house in December last year and had locked herself up. She said apart from a tiffin provider, no one visited the house. She claimed to have seen an old man coming to the house some time ago. “At the time of moving in, she claimed to be a doctor but we never saw her go out for work,” said a neighbour. “She seemed to have had the money to buy the flat and had apparently kept the rest of the money at home,” she said.
At times she would call Sharma to take her help in arranging medicines but she refused to visit a doctor. “She also claimed that she had a sister named Anjana, who stayed at a hostel in Pune, and her parents had passed away long ago,” said another neighbou, who didn’t want to be identified.
The neighbours added that she had refused to take food for the last one week without giving a reason. “I used to supply food to her regularly but she asked me to stop the supply last week saying she was not well,” said Devender Singh.
He added that Neha seldom spoke to anyone and seemed to eye all visitors suspiciously. On Monday morning she was taken to the Deen Dayal Upadhyay hospital after being rescued by the cops. The doctors found her suffering from severe infections and malnutrition, which seemed to have resulted in death. The cops are yet to ascertain what led the woman to confine herself in the house. They are trying to get in touch with her sister to get a clear picture.