NEW DELHI: Vasundhara Oswal, daughter of Indian-origin billionaire Pankaj Oswal, has broken her silence on her three-week nightmare behind bars in Uganda. Falsely accused of kidnapping and murdering her father’s former employee, she endured prison conditions that she calls a “gross violation of human rights.”
A case built on lies
The 26-year-old was arrested on October 1, 2024, over the alleged abduction of Mukesh Menaria, a former employee of Pankaj Oswal.However, the case crumbled when Menaria was found alive in Tanzania just days later.
Despite this, Vasundhara remained imprisoned for weeks. Speaking to PTI on Friday, she recalled the horrors she faced, “I was detained for five days, then thrown in prison for two weeks. I wasn’t allowed to shower, and they denied me food and water. My parents had to bribe police officers just to get me basic necessities.”
At one point, she was reportedly denied access to a washroom as punishment.
Arrested without a warrant, thrown into a van
According to Vasundhara, Ugandan police raided her premises without a warrant and took her away under false pretenses. “When I asked them to present a search warrant, they said, ‘We are in Uganda, we can do anything. You’re not in Europe anymore,’” she alleged.
She claimed a male officer physically forced her into a police van when she refused to comply immediately.
Denied legal rights, trapped in the system
Forced to give a statement without a criminal lawyer, Vasundhara said she was made to pay $30,000 and surrender her passport for a police bond—yet she was still thrown back in her cell. Even after obtaining an unconditional release order from the courts, she was illegally detained for another 72 hours.
Shockingly, instead of dismissing the case after Menaria was found alive on October 10, authorities kept her in prison and even escalated her charges from kidnapping to attempted murder.
From petty crimes to murderers’ block
Initially housed in a facility for petty criminals, Vasundhara was later moved to a prison for convicted murderers and human traffickers. She spent two weeks in Nakasongola prison, fearing for her life.
After weeks of legal battles, she secured bail on October 21, but her ordeal was far from over. Her passport was only returned on December 10, and the case was not dismissed until December 19.
‘They wanted money’
Vasundhara alleges that corrupt officials kept the charges alive even after Menaria was found, reducing them later to a misdemeanor confinement charge—all in an attempt to extort more money.
“This was done to keep something over our heads and squeeze more money from my family,” she said.
Seeking justice
Now free, Vasundhara wants the Ugandan government to be held accountable for what she calls an unjust persecution. “This is up to the Ugandan government to correct its mistakes. We have invested in their country for years, and this is how they treat us?” she said.
As she reviews legal options, her case has raised global concerns over police corruption and human rights violations in Uganda.