By IANS,
New Delhi : A total of 46 complaints from women that their NRI husbands were harassing them or have deserted them were received by the ministry of overseas Indian affairs between April 2010 and March 2012, parliament was informed Thursday.
Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vyalar Ravi said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha that of these complaints, a maximum of 17 were received in the last two years from women married to NRI husbands living in the US.
The ministry received 15 complaints in 2010-11 and 31 complaints in 2011-12, he said giving figures.
Other nations from where complaints were received included seven from Britain and four each from Canada and Australia in the last two years, he added.
In these, the most complaints (10) were received from women with Delhi as their hometown, he added.
The minister said such complaints were usually dealt within the ministry based on the nature of the complaint and the assistance sought.
Sometimes, these were forwarded to authorities concerned including Indian missions abroad or to the national commission for women (NCW), he added.
To another query on the same subject, Ravi said the ministry does not maintain exclusive data on women deserted by their NRI husbands, except when complaints are received.
The ministry, he said, provides legal and financial assistance to those women.
He also noted that marriages with NRIs are to be registered compulsorily, as per an order of the Supreme Court issued in February 2006.
Ravi said from January 2005 to June this year, a total of 418 complaints were received by the ministry, and among them, a maximum of 101 complaints were received from women hailing from Punjab.