Geeta’s ‘family’ urges early release of DNA report

Janardan Mahto, a resident of Ludhiana, claims he is the father of Geeta. He says, “I am sure that Geeta is my daughter Heera Mani who went missing around 10 years ago.”

10.11.2015, The identity of Geeta, who has been recently brought back to India from Pakistan, is yet to be established as the Union ministry of foreign affairs has not revealed the results of her DNA test yet. The family that claims Geeta (deaf-mute) as their member, has urged the ministry to reveal the reports at the earliest.

Janardan Mahto, a resident of Ludhiana, claims he is the father of Geeta. He says, “I am sure that Geeta is my daughter Heera Mani who went missing around 10 years ago.”

Mahto has written a letter to Union minister Sushma Swaraj in this context. On Monday, his son Vinod talked to the PA of the Union minister, who told him that the ministry will disclose the result in a few days.

Advocate Momin Malik of Panipat, who pursued the case with human rights court of Karachi, Pakistan, for handing over Geeta to India, said the government has given only 10 minutes to the family to interact with Geeta.

“She was away from the family for atleast 10 years and lived in an entirely different environment. It is likely that she has forgotten many things that can be recalled,”said the advocate.

“In her statement before Karachi court, Geeta had said that she lived in a house surrounded by fields and a river crossing through the village. Such things are akin to their house in a village in Saharasa, Bihar. The government should send Geeta to the village so that she may recall her association with the place,”he added.

The advocate added that he came to know about Geeta in 2012. He had filed a case in Karachi court in August 28 this year and the verdict came on September 3.

The Hindu helpline in Pakistan that represents 22-lakh Hindu families, had submitted an affidavit in the court, stating that the girl did not belong to any Hindu family of Pakistan.

According to advocate Momin Malik, if Geeta’s DNA doesn’t match with that of Janardan’s family, he will pursue the matter with police chiefs of Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan and will urge them to find the record of the deaf-mute girls who are missing since 2000.

Sold property to pursue the case, says Mahto

Janardan Mahto said he has sold his land in village to pursue the case to get her back. He added that Geeta had identified his picture as her father but when she returned to India, she denied identifying him.