Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Shirin Mathews death: Sushma Swaraj asks Maneka Gandhi for tighter checks while issuing passports for adopted children

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has requested Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi to probe the adoption process of 3-year-old Sherin Mathews, whose body was found in a culvert in suburban Dallas in the US.

Sherin went missing on October 7 and her body was found on Sunday from a culvert in suburban Dallas, Texas.


Her father Wesley Mathews, 37, was re-arrested on Monday and charged with first-degree felony injury to a child due to conflicting statements given to the police.

He was earlier arrested for suspected child endangerment for the treatment of his daughter but was released on bond.

She said that the investigation into the case should be taken to a logical conclusion and that henceforth all passports for adopted children will be issued only after an approval from the ministry of women and child development.

The nodal body for adoption in India, Child Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), has also written to US Central Authority for Hague Adoption seeking details into Sherin's death, according to sources.

An official said that CARA received timely reports from the adoption agency in the US which was overseeing the Sherin Mathews case.

Four reports were sent to CARA by Holt International since her adoption on July 8, 2016.

These reports described how the girl was "adjusting well" in her new home and appeared to be "secure and comfortable" in the new surroundings.

However, according to these assessments, Sherin seemed to have eating problems.

One of the follow-ups records that "eating has become more and more challenging for the family". "She likes to eat food outside but not at home".

The fourth, and the last report before Sherin's death, notes, "We discussed several different strategies that may be helpful" and that "additional mealtime strategies are needed to break this cycle and avoid more serious long term eating concerns".

According to CARA CEO Lt Col Deepak Kumar, the child was undernourished right from the time she was adopted and weighed less for a girl at her age.

The girl was born on July 14, 2014 and was surrendered by parents in Gaya, Bihar. She was sent to an orphanage, Nalanda Mother Teresa Anaath Seva Ashram, which is now shut, the CARA CEO said.

More For You

Heathrow Airport

An aerial photograph taken on March 21, 2025 shows planes parked on the tarmac of Heathrow Airport. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Heathrow announces £49 bn expansion plan including third runway

LONDON's Heathrow Airport on Friday announced a £49-billion expansion plan that includes the construction of a third runway, approved by the UK government after years of legal disputes.

The third runway is expected to cost £21 bn, with flights projected to begin within the next decade. The remaining privately-funded investment will be used for airport expansion and modernisation.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kiran Desai

Desai, 53, won the Booker Prize in 2006 for The Inheritance of Loss. (Photo: Getty Images)

Kiran Desai returns to Booker longlist after 19 years

BOOKER Prize-winning author Kiran Desai has been longlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize with her new novel The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny. The book, described by the judges as “vast and immersive”, follows two young Indians in America.

Desai, 53, won the Booker Prize in 2006 for The Inheritance of Loss. Her latest work, published by Hamish Hamilton, is the longest book on this year’s list at 667 pages. Natasha Brown’s Universality is the shortest, at 156 pages.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India

The findings included 23 at IndiGo, the largest carrier, and 51 at Air India, the second largest.. (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters

DGCA finds 263 safety lapses across Indian airlines in annual audit

INDIA's aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), said on Wednesday it found 263 safety-related lapses across Indian airlines during its annual audit.

The findings included 23 at IndiGo, the largest carrier, and 51 at Air India, the second largest.

Keep ReadingShow less
Gurmuk (Gary) Singh

Gurmuk (Gary) Singh

Met Police

Tributes paid to British Sikh man stabbed to death in east London

A 30-year-old British Sikh man has been stabbed to death in east London in an attack involving people known to each other, the UK police believe.

Gurmuk Singh, known as Gary, died last week in Felbrigge Road, Ilford in east London, and was formally named by Metropolitan Police on Thursday (31).

Keep ReadingShow less
Surinder Arora submits rival plan for Heathrow expansion

Surinder Arora. (Photo: LinkedIn)

Surinder Arora submits rival plan for Heathrow expansion

HOTEL tycoon Surinder Arora has formally submitted a rival plan to expand Heathrow Airport, challenging the proposal put forward by the airport’s own operators.

Arora’s company, the Arora Group, one of the UK’s leading hotel and property businesses, has put forward a plan on Thursday (31) named “Heathrow West”, which includes a new terminal and a 2,800-metre third runway. This is shorter than the 3,500-metre runway proposed by Heathrow itself, but Arora says it offers a "cost-efficient solution" and avoids the disruption of moving the M25 motorway.

Keep ReadingShow less