India man held for 'inhumane torture' of sister Published duration 19 September 2018

image copyright Amit Mishra/Twitter image caption The woman was found in "extremely poor" health

A man has been arrested in India's capital accused of locking up and torturing his sister for two years.

Police and officials from the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) broke into his house and rescued her in a dramatic operation on Tuesday.

The woman, whose name was not given, had been starved and was so emaciated that she could not walk, talk or even recognise people, officials said.

"She is 50 years old, but she looks 90," DCW chief Swati Maliwal said.

"When we rescued her from the terrace, she was lying in her excreta. Her starvation is so extreme that she was unable to look after her basic needs."

The DCW acted after a neighbour complained.

Ms Maliwal said she personally accompanied an investigating team to the house but they had not been allowed to enter by the man and his wife, who turned abusive.

They called the police to help, but they were still not allowed to enter.

"The police then climbed to the terrace through the neighbouring house and found the woman in extremely poor condition," deputy commissioner of police Rajneesh Gupta told the BBC.

They then arrested the man and his wife for complicity in the crime.

Police say they are investigating why the couple had been torturing the woman.