Indian mother-daughter in distress in Saudi Arabia: Amarinder

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday sought External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's urgent intervention to help a mother-daughter duo reported to be in deep trouble in Saudi Arabia.

In a tweet to the minister, Amarinder Singh wrote: "This mother-daughter duo from Nawanshahr are in trouble in Saudi Arabia. Request your urgent help." 

The tweet came in response to media reports referring to a video put up on social media by Gurbaksh Kaur of Nawanshahr saying she and her daughter Reena were sent by their travel agent to Saudi Arabia for work and were now facing extreme difficulties and needed help. 

"While she herself had been sacked from her job, Reena had been framed in a false case and handed over to the police, who were not divulging any information on her whereabouts, Gurbaksh is reported to have said in the video, appealing to Sushma Swaraj for help in securing their safe return home," a Punjab government spokesperson said on Monday.

According to reports, the two had planned to go to Malaysia but the travel agent whom they had approached had fraudulently sent them to Saudi Arabia and were now demanding more money to bring them back. 

A police case has been registered on the complaint of Gurbaksh's husband, Gurmel Singh.

"Expressing concern over the incident, the Chief Minister has directed district authorities across the state to crack down on such agents to check the incidence of such cases. He has also warned of stringent action against police personnel refusing to file a complaint in any such case," the spokesperson said.

The Chief Minister has asked Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) to find out why there was delay in registering a case on the complaint filed by Gurbaksh's family. 

He has directed the DGP to expedite the investigations into the case and ensure that the guilty were booked. 

According to reports, Gurbaksh's family had complained against the travel agents responsible for duping them about 10 days ago but the police filed the case only on Sunday after the video went viral.