Tarun Karthick
Campbell Bay, 24 November 2025
A newlywed woman from Dignabad lost her life to what appears to be relentless harassment for dowry, pushing her into deep depression and eventually suicide, according to a police complaint filed by her father. The deceased, who had been married for just over three months, allegedly faced continuous torture — mentally and physically — at the hands of her husband and his family.
The young woman was married on June 8 this year to a resident of Buniyadabad. However, instead of love and respect, her father alleges that she received cruelty and persistent demands for dowry from her husband and mother-in-law. Harassment reportedly worsened to the point where she was forced to leave her marital home and return to her parents in search of peace.
But the torment did not end there. On August 20, three members from her husband’s family visited her parental home, allegedly hurling vulgar abuses, insulting her character, and inflicting immense emotional trauma. Unable to bear the constant humiliation, she tried to take her own life by consuming poison. She survived and was hospitalized at GB Pant Hospital until August 25. Despite her suffering, no significant action followed her earlier statements to authorities.
Her father continued approaching the police for help as the family attempted reconciliation. The husband even reportedly agreed to live with her but soon backed out and sent a divorce notice filled with accusations — a blow that further deteriorated the young woman’s fragile mental state.
On September 21, while her father was away, she ended her life by hanging. Before taking the drastic step, she left behind a written note naming three individuals — her mother-in-law and two other women — as the primary abusers responsible for driving her to suicide. She also recorded a video and sent it to her husband, who, as alleged in the complaint, chose silence instead of saving her.
The father has accused the husband and his relatives of abetment, dowry harassment, and cruelty, and has pleaded for registartion of FIR so that his daughter’s death does not go unanswered. The Aberdeen Police Station has registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
This tragedy exposes once again how dowry — a cruel, illegal practice — continues to destroy the lives and dreams of young brides, even in the modern day.
