Saga of Indian... businesswoman to bankrupt, paralysed prisoner

A sexagenarian Indian woman has been wrestling cruel fate for the last  three decades in the UAE. She's been a businesswoman, lost it all, served  jail term, suffered a stroke, is half paralysed and bankrupt.

Now all she desires is to return to home. But she needs help.

Kumari Amma,  61, who has spent almost half her life in the Emirates, was released from Sharjah prison more than a month ago, thanks to the efforts of a charity organisation. She spent four months and nine days behind bars in several cheque bouncing cases. Her employees, landlord and creditors filed cases against her.

Kumari had set up Reco Building Construction in Sharjah with the help of  her brother and employed about 26 employees about 19 years ago. The company was doing extremely well having undertaken two buildings. That's when fate struck it's first blow. Her brother passed succumbed to lung problems in  2002.

Kumari, however, carried on the business alone. Soon there were business partners who volunteered to help her. She claims to have incurred a loss of Dh2 million in Nuaimi Construction.

"I am bankrupt, my passport is pledged and my only saving is a number of diseases,” Kumari said.

Her thyroid problem needs urgent attention. Similarly, Kumari is partially  paralysed and cannot afford treatment.

Recalling her better days, Kumari said: "I started the construction business with my brother 19 years ago with just a pencil and pen. Business
picked up very well and we did make good money. However, after the death of  my brother I began incurring losses. I cannot leave the UAE because my passport is pledged."

She had issues with Labour Ministry as well, because of backlog payments for her employees.“I am thankful to the Islamic Charity organisation that helped me to come  out of jail,” she said.

She's spent months without taking a shower even, holed up in a dark room  afraid of police as she had not paid house rent or settled workers' dues. "I managed to pay Dh83,000 with the money brought from India and later in November 2011 surrendered to the Ajman Police. Every 15 days, I was taken to court for hearing and the judge would just ask me whether I have money to pay debtors. I would cry out loud and then police would take me back to jail,” she said, adding that she was sentenced for two years for a cheque bouncing case of Dh11,000. 

"Once you are in financial problems or go to jail, those who owe money stop making payments," she said. "Various clients owe me about Dh66,000, and most of them have disappeared while I was in jail," she added. "I could not eat prison food because of my health conditions until finally  an Islamic charity organisation bailed me out," she said.

"I only had Dh14  on me when I left prison. A taxi driver took pity on me and dropped at my  accommodation. Now I just want to go home. I don't know how to solve my problems. I cannot commit suicide," she added.

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