When COVID-19 first emerged in Wuhan, China, it struck fear into the hearts of millions around the world. As this viral infection quickly spread across countries and continents to become a pandemic, billions of people faced mandatory stay-at-home orders under former President Donald Trump’s administration. For 33-year-old mother Munmun Majhi and her son though – their terror was compounded as they were forced to remain locked inside their apartment for three whole years out of sheer fear that they would catch the virus and fall ill if exposed.
The police have now stepped in to save Majhi and her 10-year-old son from their entrapment inside their Gurugram, Haryana home. Terrified of catching the COVID virus, this 33-year-old mother refused to step outside for months until authorities intervened.
Majhi was so overwhelmed with fear that when her husband, Sujan Majhi, returned home one day after the nationwide lockdown she refused to let him enter their own house. In desperation, he called the police who unfortunately dismissed his pleas for help and left him unable to return home. He eventually had no choice but to rely on friends and family as his wife would not permit entry into their abode.
Despite the pandemic, Majhi’s husband managed to keep their home afloat by continuing to pay rent and utilities. He then found a second dwelling which he rented out for himself while working as an engineer at his own company – one that was challenged during these difficult times.
As the years went by, Majhi refused to allow her husband into the house. Her fear of potentially contracting COVID-19 had become so paralyzing that she wouldn’t let anyone cross the threshold.
In a desperate attempt to reunite with his family, Sujan contacted the police for assistance. It had been an exhausting three years since he last laid eyes on his wife and son; however, when officers arrived at the house, Majhi made it abundantly clear that she would not come out – insisting that she and her son were in perfect condition.
“We then made a video call, and when I saw the child, I became emotional. His hair had grown to his shoulders.”
During his three years of seclusion, the child had no contact with anyone other than his mother. To keep himself engaged and entertained, he often drew on the walls or found different ways to pass time.
The policeman said, “His mother was in a panic over Covid. She had no intention of stepping out. She kept saying, ‘I will not let my son step out because he will die immediately. I kept talking to her, kept asking her if she needed any help. I think she started trusting me. So when I called her to the police station today, she came, but the child was not with her.”
In the end, they were able to persuade the mother to relax her defenses.
“We finally managed to convince her. She was taken to a hospital, and we then went to the flat to rescue the child.”
To ensure the well-being of both mother and child, psychiatric care was prescribed for them.
Sujan is absolutely elated to be reunited with his family and back in the comforts of home.
“I am happy they are out. I have to take care of their health. Now they are being treated. I hope my life will be back on track soon.”
