Panaji, Nov 15 (IANS) The Goa government has asked the Indian consulate in Kuwait to follow up reports that a maid of Goan origin was raped there by a member of the family she works for. The Goa Non Resident Indian (NRI) cell took up the matter after the story was first reported on the website of the Arab Times newspaper and was later reproduced in a local English daily.

“We have written to the Indian consulate to get back to us with the details of the case. We expect a response by early next week,” the director of the cell U.D. Kamat told IANS Saturday morning, adding that he had not been able to confirm the incident yet.

“No one has complained to the NRI cell about it. Generally when such incidents occur, the kin of the victims here rush to our office asking us for help. But this has not happened in the present case,” he said.

The report published in Herald, a local daily, claimed that “a section of the Gulf media carried a shocking story of rape of a 27-year-old Goan maid by a 13-year-old Arab boy” in a home in Surra, Kuwait. The report further said that the boy was a son of the sponsor, and added that the maid had sought shelter in the Indian embassy in Kuwait.

“The embassy is closed on Friday, and we will be able to communicate with them only on Sunday,” Kamat added.

Gulf countries like Kuwait, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates attract thousands of Goans for employment, particularly in the hospitality and the unskilled labour sectors.