After 25-year search, woman traces son

CHENNAI: A 55-year-old woman is facing a tough situation, having to prove herself as the mother of her son who went missing at the age of three in 1978. This modern day King Solomon’s court drama is now being enacted after a couple from Holland adopted the child, after allegedly preparing false documents.

The petitioner Mary approached MKB Nagar police station on Thursday, seeking to unite with her son Manicka Yesuraj, who is now working in a bank in Holland.

According to Mary, her husband Philip who was working on a ship, left their home in 1978. Mary was left with two sons - Selvaraj and Manicka Yesuraj - and a daughter, Lourdu. Yesuraj admitted to a creche, which was functioning in the Church of Our Lady of Consolation at Vysarpadi.

‘‘I trusted the priest Fehlooz and admitted my son there. However, one day, my son went missing mysteriously. I had approached the local police station to trace my son, but they closed the file after declaring me as mentally deranged,’’ alleged Mary.

In 1988, she got a photograph of her son with some text written in Dutch through Gnanamariam, a worker in the church. Meanwhile, Lourdu had become a nurse and was employed in England. There, Lourdu tried to trace her brother with the photograph.

‘‘I inquired with my friends and got the address in Holland in 1998. I struggled for more than six years to trace Yesuraj. I approached many social service agencies, the Holland Embassy and even private detective agencies. Finally, when I finally got the address of Yesuraj in 2004, his adopted parent Tony Pijnenpurg, did not allow us to meet my brother. They had changed his name to Manicka Yesuraj Tony Pijnenpurg,’’ Lourdu told this website's newspaper.

According to her, Nagaraj of Nungambakkam, who claimed the boy was an orphan, adopted Yesuraj. With a new passport issued based on the Nungambakkam address, Yesuraj left India on March 14th, 1978.

‘‘We were cheated by the priest and the whole process of adoption is illegal,’’ Lourdu added.

After two years of struggle, the family was allowed to meet Yesuraj. However, taken aback by the new development, he said he would take a decision only after Mary proved she was his mother.

Based on the complaint of Mary, MKB Nagar police have registered a case and investigation is on.

‘‘We have received a petition and if necessary, we will re-open the original missing case registered in 1978,’’ an investigating officer said.