The story of the 13 year old girl from Vijaywada who passed away of cancer after her father allegedly denied her money for the treatment has gone viral. The mother of Sai Sri blames her former husband for her death and seeks justice.
“How can anyone be so heartless? He let my daughter pass away even though he could have stopped it,” said the grieving mother of Sai Sri. The little girl passed away on Sunday after months of battling with Acute Myeloid Leukemia, a blood cancer that affects blood cells and platelets.
A video of the girl pleading with her father went viral where she begged her father to give them the money for her treatment. In the video, she is seen saying, “I haven’t gone to school in months. I want to play with my friends. If they complete my treatment, I will happily go back to school. My hands and feet hurt. I need the treatment. Mother really doesn’t have the money. If you think that she will take your money, then you take me to the hospital, and get me treated.”
The mother, Suma has alleged that the father of the girl allowed their daughter to pass away because he wanted control over the land that was under Sai Sri’s name. The father, Shivakumar had bought the land under his daughter’s name years ago and signed himself as the guardian. This would mean that in the case of the girl’s death the land would automatically revert back to the him.
The story is that Suma and Shivakumar were married in 2002 and she says he constantly harassed her. The couple stayed with Sai Sri in Vijayawada up till 2007, the same year he purchased the house under Sai Sri’s name.
In 2008, the couple split due to a major fallout. Suma had claimed that the tipping point was when he assaulted her. Suma said, “Until 2010, things were a little stable. Shivakumar would come outside the house, visit the child, spend some time and go away.” Suma then began a relationship with someone else and moved to Hyderabad with Sai.
Suma also explained, “After that, he began calling me late in the night, and threatening me again. I had enough of this, so we went and met the Vijayawada Police Commissioner and took an undertaking, and then a mutual divorce.”
Up to 2015, Suma lived with her partner, Krishna Kumar in Hyderabad. Krishna spoke to a news reporter and said, “Even after that, Shivakumar was still in touch with Sai. He would occasionally visit her in school and talk to her, and she would come and inform us. However, he was not giving any maintenance, and neither did we ask.”
The family has said that Sai was first diagnosed with cancer on 27th August 2016 when she had a fever and they got a blood test done.
Krishna also added, “At that time, we informed Shivakumar, and he came to Hyderabad’s Apollo Hospital on August 29. Sai was in the ICU, and he saw her and deposited Rs. 2 lakh. He said that she was his daughter and even stayed there for 2 or 3 days. After that, he went back to Bengaluru, but still sent another Rs. 3 lakh for Sai’s treatment.” Sadly after this was when, Shivakumar stopped keeping in touch with his daughter.
Suma has claimed, “He has an advocate friend called Seshagiri Rao. He is a retired police officer. He spoke to me when Sai was still in the hospital and asked me to send all medical records because his daughter was a doctor. I sent everything to Shiva Kumar on WhatsApp. After that, Rao told Shivakumar to stop helping my daughter.”
The mother also added, “I don’t know what they spoke, but Rao must have told Shivakumar that he would get the Vijayawada property if Sai passed away, as he was the guardian. He also owns several other properties, and did not want her claiming a stake in those after he passed away.” Eventually, the father completely cut off and stopped responding to their calls.
Krishna also explained, “Even after that, we were bearing the medical expenses. I sold my property in Hyderabad and paid Rs. 20 lakhs to clear all the dues. By January 17, 2017, the doctors told us that Sai was cured.” He also added, “They told us that there was no cancer remaining in the body, and said that if she didn’t get it again in the next 5 or 6 years, then she would not have any problems in the future.” The doctors informed the family that to avoid a relapse of cancer they would have to spend Rs. 40,000 to 50,000 a month just on medication for the girl for one full year.
After they got this news, Suma and Sai managed to track Shivakumar down in Bengaluru and went to his house on the 27th of February. The mother and daughter explained to him that they had cured her cancer and needed money for her medication. The couple explained that Shivakumar’s behavior completely changed and he insisted he would take care of Sai and educate her.
The couple then convinced Sai to stay with her father as they couldn’t afford her medication and the father has promised to.
Suma said, “Within three days, she said that she wanted to return. She started saying that her father didn’t treat her properly and did not give her medicines in time. She said that she was not even fed properly.” Suma has also claimed that the father misbehaved with his own daughter and manhandled her giving the young girl mental stress.
“We immediately brought her back to Hyderabad, but Sai was really depressed. In this depression, she started getting the fever again. We thought that she may be lonely, so we brought her back to Vijayawada, so she can spend time with our extended family,” the mother explained.
Sai began getting a fever again in April, the parents took her to a Vijayawada hospital. The tests taken showed her platelet count was fluctuating again like the previous time she was affected with cancer.
Krishna explained, “We immediately rushed her back to the Hyderabad hospital, where they conducted tests and told us that cancer had relapsed. They said that it was due to stress and said that there was only one way to save her.”
“First, they said it would cost Rs. 10 lakh for chemotherapy and another Rs. 25 lakh for bone marrow transplant. I didn’t have that kind of money, so I called her father. However, he did not respond,” Suma said.
Suma had no other option but to sell the house to get the money for the girl’s surgery. Sadly, Suma claimed that her former husband Shivakumar stopped her by using the help of his long time friend and TDP MLA Bonda Umamaheswara Rao.
Krishna further explained, “Even when the call money racket broke out in Andhra in 2015, Shivakumar was involved and the police opened a rowdy sheet against him.” The call money racket was a scandal that involved a number of financiers. These financiers provided women with high interest rate loans. They then pressured the women to hand over their homes and lands when they failed to pay the loan back.
Suma explained that the MLA’s men occupied the house they planned to sell and said they were tenants paying rent to Shivakumar.
The accused MLA has refused the allegations against him. After all that has happened Suma still has hope that she will get justice for her daughter. “I am hopeful. I have submitted a complaint with the Vijayawada Commissioner, and he assured us that action will be taken. How can anyone let their own daughter die. If he gets punishment, it will be a lesson to everyone,” she said. Suma also added,
Suma also added, “The police should file a case against him, arrest him and take him to court. Only then, will justice be served.” On July 20th , the police commissioner will have to present a report to the State Human Rights Commission.
On July 20th, the police commissioner will have to present a report to the State Human Rights Commission.
