Billionaire Pankaj Oswal's daughter jailed in Uganda, denied basic hygiene
Vasundhara Oswal, the 26-year-old daughter of Indian-origin Swiss industrialist Pankaj Oswal, has been in detention in Uganda since October 1. Her family claims her detention is a result of "corporate and political manipulation." While the Ugandan authorities have tied her arrest to a missing person investigation, her family has refuted the claim. Since her detention, Vasundhara has reportedly faced harsh prison conditions and denied basic rights.
Vasundhara's arrest and prison conditions
Reportedly, Vasundhara was arrested by 20 armed men posing as law enforcement officials from her family's extra neutral alcohol (ENA) plant in Uganda. Since her arrest, she has reportedly been kept in brutal and perilous conditions in prison. Her family claims that she has been denied vegetarian food, shifted between prisons without notice, and made to live in filthy conditions.
Plea for international intervention
Pankaj Oswal has appealed to the United Nations and written a letter to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, seeking international intervention for his daughter's release. The family's attempts to provide legal support or establish contact with Vasundhara have been thwarted as she has been moved from one prison to another. They allege she was forced to share a cramped room with multiple convicted criminals, worsening her plight.
Family refutes charges against Vasundhara
According to reports, Vasundhara and her colleagues were taken into custody without a formal warrant in connection with a missing man's case. However, Pankaj Oswal has refuted these charges in an open letter to President Museveni. He attributed his daughter's detention to false allegations made by a former employee who had stolen valuable assets and taken a $200,000 loan with the Oswals as guarantors.
Oswal family in hiding following Vasundhara's detention
After Vasundhara's detention, her parents Pankaj and Radhika Oswal have reportedly gone into hiding at an undisclosed location. The family insists that the man Vasundhara was accused of murdering, a former employee of their business empire, has already been found alive in Tanzania. This further fuels their claim that Vasundhara's imprisonment is unlawful and based on false accusations.
