Dad Of Slumdog Millionaire Star Tries To Sell Daughter

The father of Slumdog Millionaire child star Rubina Ali is accused of attempting to sell his 9-year-old daughter. In an undercover operation performed by the UK’s News of the World, someone from the magazine posed as a wealthy sheik and met with Rubina’s dad Rafiq Qureshi and offered to sell his daughter for about $US300,000 dollars.

Rafiq stated that to the fake sheik that “I have to consider what’s best for me, my family and Rubina’s future.” He then continued to “blame Hollywood bosses for forcing him to put his daughter up for sale,” and that they got nothing out of the film. The original price tag for Rubina was four times lower but was raised. Rafiq’s brother added that, “The child is special now. This is NOT an ordinary child. This is an Oscar child!”

Why did The News of the World organise this sting in the first place? Apparently, they were tipped off by a worried family friend. The informant stated that “Rubina’s family are furious that despite the film doing so well and their pretty daughter becoming so famous, they are still living in such rough conditions.” The family friend talked about how the scheme materialised, “they were approached by one wealthy Middle Eastern family who saw their plight in an item on Al Jazeera TV. The couple expressed an interest in adopting young Rubina and her parents’ eyes lit up.”

Trafficking of kids from the slums of Mumbai to be the Middle East is not a rare occurrence. Often they are forced to be camel jockeys or are faced with sexual abuses. Even with the risks involved, this did not at all deter Rotiq from the idea of having his daughter sold, adopted and sent there.

The father claims that none of the things that were promised to them have come to fruition, like the luxury apartment that they were to move to (which is currently being built). The family of seven still lives in one room in the slums. Rafiq stated that “They haven’t looked after us. They gave some money at the start but they gave us nothing afterwards. They gave us around 150,000 rupees (£2,040). They’ve been talking about giving us a house, but all they do is talk.” There also is a trust for Rubina, which was established by the filmmakers for her education, housing and wellbeing.

Do you think that someone should adopt her, regardless of price, just to get her out of this situation?

Source