Dubai: An Indian national and his wife have been charged at a court in Dubai with physically assaulting the man's mother, causing her bone and rib fractures, internal bleeding and starving her to death.

The Court of First Instance was informed that the 29-year-old man and his 28-year-old wife tortured the elderly woman repeatedly. They even cut her right eye iris out and part of her other eye, the Khaleej Times reported on Wednesday.

The torture is believed to have lasted from July 2018 till October 2018. A case was registered at Al Qusais police station.

The couple denied the charge. However, they have been detained.

The case was brought to light by the couple's neighbour, who is a hospital employee.

The 54-year-old Indian witness recounted how the wife visited her at her apartment in the same building.

"She was then holding her daughter. She claimed that her mother-in-law had come from India but did not take proper care of their daughter and that the girl would often fall sick while in her care. She wanted me to look after the girl until she came back from work," the witness was quoted as saying by the paper.

About three days later, the witness spotted an elderly woman lying down in her neighbours' balcony. "That woman was almost naked with apparent burn marks on her body. I informed the security guard."

The witness then knocked on the couple's door.

"I found his mother on the floor. Her clothes were sticking to her body and she obviously was in a critical condition and needed urgent medical treatment. I called the ambulance."

The witness recalled how the mother cried and screamed of pain when the paramedics tried to carry her because of the burns she had. "The defendant remained in the flat and did not go with his mother. I told the paramedics he should go along. He went later after they talked him into it."

A Filipino paramedic, 36, recalled how he found the victim in a very bad shape in her son's flat.

"She was in awful pain. Her hands and legs were swollen and her legs bore burn marks. Her son claimed she had poured hot water on herself when we asked him about the cause of the burn injuries. He was standing far from her, apparently indifferent about her condition."

The paramedic added that the son did not help carry his mother to the ambulance while the neighbours, who were around, stepped in to help.

The forensic doctor told the prosecutor that the mother weighed just 29kg at the time of her death.

"She was tortured repeatedly over a short span of time. Burns covered 10 per cent of her body. The bone and rib fractures, internal bleeding, beating with different tools, burns, negligence and starvation have all led to the deterioration of her health condition."

A hospital certificate showed the mother died on October 31, 2018.

The trial will continue on July 3.

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Berhampur (Odisha) (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday asserted that the expiry date of the BJD government in Odisha is June 4, the day the assembly election results will be announced.

Addressing his first election rally in the state, Modi urged people to give a chance to the BJP to make Odisha the number one state in the country.

In an apparent dig at BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the prime minister said, "Odisha needs a CM who understands Odia language and culture."

"The BJP will form a double-engine government here after elections. The expiry date of the BJD government is June 4, 2024," Modi said at the Berhampur rally.

He also claimed that Odisha has not benefitted from Ayushman Bharat Yojana as the "BJD government did not implement" it in the state.

The Centre gave Rs 10,000 crore under the 'Jal Jeevan Mission' scheme to Odisha but the BJD dispensation could not spend the money properly.

"You have given 50 years to Congress and 25 years to BJD. Just give five years to the BJP. We will make Odisha the number one state in the country," Modi said at the rally.

Odisha has fertile land, mineral resources, and sea coasts, but people are still poor, he claimed.

"We released a visionary manifesto for Odisha promising jobs for youths and women and health facilities for senior citizens. BJP fulfils what it says: Modi added.

The assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Odisha will be held simultaneously.

"I have come here to invite you to the swearing-in ceremony of BJP's CM on June 10. On the very day, we will implement the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana which the Naveen Patnaik government has been resisting. This son of Lord Jagannath will take care of all senior citizens under this scheme," Modi said.

Referring to Patnaik's alleged weak command over Odia language, Modi said: "A person, who lives, understands and takes pride in Odia culture and tradition, can help resolve the problems of Odisha at a faster pace...".

He appealed to the people to allow BJP to serve the state for once and it is Modi's guarantee that Odisha will be turned into the number one state in the next five years.

The prime minister said Odisha lags behind in every development parameter despite having huge resources like water, fertile land, rich mineral wealth, and a vast coastline.

"Who is responsible for Odisha’s backwardness? Why are the people of resources-rich Odisha still poor? The answer is rampant loot by Congress, which ruled the state for 50 years, and then the BJD for next 25 years. The BJD is sinking, while Congress is a spent force and the BJP is the only ray of hope for the people," he said.

The prime minister also said that the BJP has given the country's highest post to the daughter of Odisha. "It is my good fortune that President Droupadi Murmu Ji tells me every minute for the development of Odisha. I feel that I will be able to do a lot for the state under her guidance," he said.

Responding to Modi's claim, senior BJD leader and Naveen Patnaik's close aide VK Pandian said: "Naveen Patnaik will take oath as the chief minister of Odisha for the sixth consecutive time between 11.30 am to 1.30 pm on June 9."