BY SAM ALFAN.
Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji has approved charges against prominent Mombasa family who are accused of abducting three children from a widower whose wife is alleged to have committed suicide.
Haji directed the arrest and prosecution of Urvash Kauship, Lalji Hirani, Ratan Daya, Dakish Nilesh Siyani, Mitiksha Vekariyi, Arvind Vekarija and Namrata Manoj Keshavji Makwana.
“The office hence concludes the actions of 5th July 2022 were criminal hence the seven suspects committed criminal offence to wit Conspiracy to commit a felony and abduction.The aforementioned persons to be arrested arraigned face the above chavges forthwith,” ordered DPP Haji.
They are to be charged with conspiracy to commit a felony and abduction.
The three kids, a-five-year-old girl and seven months old twins were allegedly ‘forcibly taken’ by two of the suspects- Lali and his wife Hirani, after their father, Nikesh Harji, was taken to custody for almost a month over the death of his wife.
His late wife, Vanita Nikesh was found hanging in her bedroom in April 2022.
After he was cleared of any charges, Lali and his wife took away the children and filed an application before a Tononoka law court seeking the custodial orders of the minors.
Mombasa Principal Magistrate Viola Yator granted them custody even though the father claimed they were not at all related.
Harji told the court that he is the only surviving parent of the children and the strangers forcibly took up their custody without his consent.
He revealed that he resides in Nairobi and for 30 days, he has been unable to see or know where his children were.
The widower, through lawyer Danstan Omari, moved to court seeking to have legal and actual custody, care and control of the minors.
Harji told the court documents that he and his late wife Vanita Nekish Senghani were married on or about 2017 and had been living as husband and wife until her death on April 3, 2022. Their marriage was blessed with a five year old child and twins aged five months.
Nikesh also sought an exclusion order against the three strangers, who took custody of the children from interfering with the welfare and custody of the minors pending hearing and determination of the case.
The court allowed him to see his children and restrained all parties from removing the children from the jurisdiction of the court.
The Magistrate further ordered the children’s officer, Nyali Sub County, to conduct an urgent social inquiry about the children and file the report in court.
Omari claimed said it has been difficult for the police to effect arrest orders against the seven suspects.
“When the police went to arrest them yesterday, they locked in the father of the children inside the compound plus police officers, their argument is that they are above the law,” claimed Omari.
DPP in the letter directing for their arrest, noted that a purported letter allegedly signed by the grandmother of the children handing the kids to the suspects lacked any legal probative value as children are not “willed” out by 2nd tier relative to strangers.
