The 16-year-old is resting her head on her mom's lap after nine long years.
There was a seven-year-old girl who went missing. She said she was lured with an ice-cream by a couple who picked her up outside her school.
She was found in a cave on August 4th. Her mother says she's happy.
I had given up trying to find my daughter. The gods have been good to her.
The child was kidnapped by the D'Souza's because they didn't have a child of their own. They have made an arrest.
She lived in a small house with her brothers and parents in a suburb.
On the day she went missing, she had left for school with her brother, but he ran late and left her behind. The couple promised to buy her an ice-cream.
If she cried or drew attention to herself the couple would hurt her.
After the couple had a child of their own, she was pulled out of school and they all moved to Mumbai.
The abuse increased after the baby was born.
They would hit me with a belt. They beat me with a rolling pin and my back bled. I was made to do chores at home and work outside.
The house where D'Souza's lived was close to her family's, but she wasn't familiar with the roads and had no money or phone to call for help.
When the couple were asleep, she got her hands on the phone and typed her name into it. She was able to call for help from videos and posters.
She said that she decided to seek help and escape.
It took her seven months to talk to Pramila, who worked at the house where she worked as a babysitter.
She immediately agreed to her assistance. Rafiq is a neighbour of the mother of the missing poster. A meeting was arranged after the mother-daughter talked on the video call.
She was overcome with emotion when her mother found a birthmark on her daughter. My doubts were gone in a second. She said she knew she had found her daughter.
She is happy to have been involved in the reunion. A child should be helped by a mother. She says that they are still mothers even if they aren't their biological mothers.
A group of people went to the police station to file a complaint after the meeting. The police were told everything. She told them where her abductors lived. The accused was identified and arrested.
According to the senior inspector at Mumbai's DN Nagar police station, cases have been filed against the accused for kidnapping, issuing threats, physical violence and for violating child labour laws.
Everyone who knew her was happy when she returned home. People who lived next to her when she was small have been coming to meet her.
Her mother is making up for lost time with her by cooking her favourite food and combing her hair. The two try to spend as much time together as possible, but life at the moment is hard for them.
Four months ago, Pooja's father died of cancer. She wanted her mother to be able to provide for herself and her three children. She is struggling to make ends meet due to the meager earnings.
I have legal expenses as well. If I miss a day's work, we won't have enough money to eat the next day.
She is still trying to process her trauma. She feels sad that she won't be able to see her dad again. She spends most of her time at home or at a family member's house.
I want to help my mom, but I can't. She wants to study as well.
The mother said she couldn't be happier. "Work is tiring, but I find my strength once in a while." She is happy that she is back.
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