HER voice rising, Madam Amutha Valli Krishnan, 51, became increasingly agitated as she pointed a quivering finger at a young man she claims had assaulted her at the Novena Church three years ago.

'The botak (bald) man strangle me! Strangle me now!' she cried out loudly while beating her chest.

Tennis coach Nasrom Abdullah, the defendant she pointed to, remained impassive from his seat behind the lawyers.

Madam Valli's outburst came on her second day on the witness stand in her suit against two priests and six church members for allegedly forcing an exorcism on her in the church on Aug 10, 2004.

Yesterday's hearing was abruptly cut short at 3.35pm when Justice Lee Seiu Kin called lawyers on all sides into his chambers.

Lawyers emerged after 10 minutes, tight-lipped, and would say only that the hearing was adjourned to Nov 14.

It became apparent yesterday that the cross-examination was not making any headway.

Madam Valli's constant refrain yesterday, in response to questions from defence lawyer Tito Isaac, was 'I can't remember'.

She could not recall the birth dates of her two children and she could not name the church where she was baptised.

She denied having worked at the then-Telecoms Authority of Singapore as a morse code operator. She had confirmed this earlier when her lawyer, Mr R. S. Bajwa, took her through her affidavit.

When Mr Isaac asked if she remembered the four times she had been warded at the National University Hospital, she replied: 'Where is this hospital? I've never been to NUH.'

He then produced records showing that she had repeatedly visited NUH since 1986 for various problems.

'This is my record? I was admitted to NUH? When, sir?' she asked, when shown diagnoses of her hysterical dissociative neurosis on Dec 22, 1986, for which she was warded for 28 days.

But she recalled her more recent medical history.

She named Dr Angelina Chan and Professor Ong Thiew Chai as her doctors. They treated her for post-traumatic stress disorder after the alleged church incident.

She remembered, too, being warded in Tan Tock Seng Hospital for 32 days.

On the alleged church incident, she told the court: 'I was tortured, you know, at Novena.'

MR TITO Isaac, counsel for the Redemptorist order and Father Simon Tan.

Madam Valli appeared distraught yesterday. She sobbed as Mr Bajwa read out her affidavit. When he told the court she needed a catheter to urinate and was fearful of bathing, she wailed: 'I am very painful!'

Her Indonesian maid Aminah, 31, sat next to her in the witness box, soothed her and even cried along with her.

Mr Isaac, for his part, kept assuring Madam Valli.

'I'm not going to hurt you. This is the temple of justice. This is the safest place in Singapore right now. There is nothing to worry about,' he told her.

The hearing began with arguments over whether consultant psychiatrist Ken Ung Eng Khean could sit in.

Senior Counsel Jimmy Yim, another defence lawyer, said it was the usual practice for expert witnesses to sit in, but Mr Bajwa argued that Dr Ung was a partisan witness.

Justice Lee decided that Dr Ung could not sit in during Madam Valli's testimony but he could do so when her expert witnesses take the stand.

'I cannot remember. I don't know'

MR TITO Isaac, counsel for the Redemptorist order and Father Simon Tan, cross-examined Madam Amutha Valli yesterday, but he had trouble getting answers from her. These were their exchanges on three issues:

ON WHERE WAS SHE BAPTISED

Mr Isaac: Were you baptised in Novena Church?

Madam Valli: No. I can't recall the church... Jesus something. I can't recall, sir, because every now and then they will change the name of the church, sometimes they say go this church, that church... so many churches in Singapore...

Sir, what is your question again? Where was I baptised? Or when?

Mr Isaac: You can answer both if you like.

Madam Valli: Where ah? Sir, are you talking to me? This is 2007? I cannot remember. I don't know.

ON WHEN HER CHILDREN WERE BORN

Mr Isaac: Can you remember (Miss Subashini Jeyabal's) birthdate?

Madam Valli: I think 2004.

Mr Isaac: Can you remember which hospital (was she born in)?

Madam Valli: There are so many hospitals.

Mr Isaac: I know you have been to a number.

Madam Valli: There is one called Kandang Kerbau... where I give birth, I must see the certificate... I think it must be in 2004.

Mr Isaac: How about your son, your first born. When is his birthday?

Madam Valli: Sir, my daughter is 22 now... Your Honour, wait I count first okay? My son's birthday is in 2004? 10 August 2004.

(Aug 10, 2004 is the date of her alleged botched exorcism.)

ON HER FATHER AND TELECOMS

Mr Isaac: What about your father? Where did your father work?

Madam Valli: My father is dead. If my father know I come to court, he will be very sad. I love my father. That's why they all bully me, my father is not around. He's dead. I don't have a father. My father never work, my father dead.

Mr Isaac: He was the one that got you the job as a morse code operator with Telecoms?

Madam Valli: My father is dead so long. What operator? What is morse code? What is it, sir? Can you tell me?

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