Tamil Nadu Woman Dies By Suicide, Had Alleged Dowry Harassment In Video

A 26-year-old woman named Shobana has died by suicide, she had posted a video alleging that her husband and in-laws were harassing her for dowry. A resident of Virudhachalam in Cuddalore district, Shobana posted the video on a social networking site before ending her life, blaming her husband Vijayakumar, 28, for continuously torturing and finally forcing her to take the extreme step on Wednesday night, The Hindu reported. The couple got married in 2018.

According to the police, Vijayakumar used to work in an IT company in Chennai and the couple had a one-year-old son. After losing his job during the lockdown, he came back home. Allegedly, he and his parents started pressuring Shobana to bring in more dowry from her family. Following her death, Shobana's family members lodged a complaint with the Virudhachalam police.

The police arrested Vijaykumar and his parents after her video went viral. "Vijaykumar lost his job after the pandemic as people were being laid off. So he and his parents, Selvarani (45) and Anabalagan (53) tortured Shobana for money. The husband was also having an affair with another woman and Shobana had suspected that they were trying to drive her out to accommodate the other woman," a police official in the Virudhachalam Deputy Superintendent's office, told The News Minute.

What You Should Know

• A woman from Cuddalore district died by suicide and blamed her husband and in-laws for dowry harassment.
• In a video shot before her death, she alleged that they were harassing her to bring more dowry.
• She posted the video online before ending her life.
• Vijayakumar and in-laws were arrested by the police soon after her death.

"My mother-in-law says I have come to ruin this family. Despite bringing so much gold to the house, she says I have brought nothing to the marriage. They have not done anything for me till now. Despite this, they say I have come to destroy the house and that I am a prostitute. Please take care of my child well, that is all I want. Bury me next to my father," the victim said the video, a report by TNM said.

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In another video, she also urged someone to take her son's responsibility after her death. "Her mother confirmed that she had called asking for more jewellery based on her husband's demands. She has told her family several times that she was being tortured by her mother-in-law, but they told her to adjust and stay put. Even the night before her suicide she has called them to cry. They told her to come home with the child for sometime," said an investigating official, adding, "Tensions in the house seem to have escalated in the last two weeks.”

Shobana's in-laws have been arrested under various sections of the IPC, including section 174 (3) as it involved suicide by a woman within seven years of her marriage. It was later altered to include section 304(b) ( Dowry death) and section 306 (Abetment of suicide).

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