The two, residents of Sector 2, had accused their maternal uncle Babban Zaidi of illegally confining and torturing them. The sisters belong to the royal family of Raipur Rani.

On December 17, 1993, Hasan Murtaza, the father of the two girls, had allegedly set his wife Ruksana on fire at their house in Sector 2. He was awarded life imprisonment by an Ambala court in 1997. Hasan’s father had transferred his share of property to Ruksana, which included a 14-marla house in Sector 4 and Rs 50 lakh in the shape of fixed deposit receipts. Being minors at the time of the incident, their maternal uncle was made their guardian.

In their complaint filed at a local court today, the two alleged that Zaidi tried to seize their property after they turned major. They claimed that Zaidi forced them to discontinue their studies soon after he was made their guardian. He refused to pay the school fees despite the fact that lakhs of rupees had been deposited in their name in a bank as part of their property. The two were students of Saint Soldier and Sutlaj Public School in Panchkula.

Panchkula Deputy Commissioner Rajender Kataria said: “The girls had earlier lodged a complaint with the National Woman Rights Commission in New Delhi, which they forwarded to the authorities here. It was found out that the two had recently shifted with their father Hasan at Raipur Rani, who was released from jail sometime ago. Following their complaint, an official from the cell set up under the Domestic Violence Act in the district took the two girls under their protection.” The girls have refused to stay either with their father or the uncle, Kataria added.