Norway convicts Indian couple: Family shocked, to file appeal

Hyderabad: Family members of the Indian couple, convicted by a Oslo court on child abuse charges, today expressed their disappointment over the verdict saying it violates child rights and sought intervention of the government. The family members of Chandrasekhar Vallabhaneni, a software professional from Andhra Pradesh, who along with his wife Anupama were given jail terms said they will appeal in a higher court against the judgement. “We are thoroughly disappointed with the court judgement. The Indian government has not responded on time. The judgement itself violates child rights as the two kids of my uncle will not have parental guidance as long as they are in prison,” Chandrasekhar’s nephew Sailendra told reporters here. [caption id=“attachment_545154” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Image from IBN-Live[/caption] “We will now appeal in the higher court. We also request the Indian government to intervene,” he added. The couple were arrested by Norway police last month and the court convicted them for gross or repeated maltreatment of their child/children by threats, violence or other wrong. The prosecution proposed a sentence of 18 months for the father and 15 months for the mother in the case which was upheld by the court. PTI