The husband of a 28-year-old newly married woman, who allegedly fell to her death from the third floor of an NDMC housing complex in Delhi’s Lodhi Colony, has been arrested on charges of dowry harassment, police said on Sunday.
The accused, identified as Arastu Sika, was arrested after the woman’s family alleged that she had been subjected to dowry-related harassment.
The 28-year-old woman, a resident of Pushp Vihar, was found seriously injured outside New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) Residential Apartment Building B at Palika Kunj in Delhi’s Lodhi Colony on Saturday evening, police said on Sunday. Investigators believe she fell from the third floor of a building in the complex. She was rushed to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), where doctors declared her dead.
The woman, who was working as a sales manager in a private company in Chhatarpur, got married on April 24 this year. Since the death occurred within seven years of marriage, mandatory inquest proceedings were initiated and the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) was informed.
Police said they have not yet determined how the woman arrived at the NDMC housing complex or the circumstances that led to her death. CCTV footage from the area is being examined and residents are being questioned to reconstruct her movements before the incident.
Read also: Demanding dowry after ‘love’ marriage, abuse and quarrel over salary: Shocking allegations in the death of a newly married Delhi woman
Shocking allegations
Her family claimed that she was either killed or forced to die due to constant harassment by her husband and in-laws over dowry. According to her uncle, the accused’s family requested a car $10 lakh after the love marriage between the couple and allegedly subjected her to repeated physical and mental abuse.
The woman’s relatives also claimed that while her husband was initially against her work, he later insisted on handing over her full salary. Since she is the sole breadwinner for her family after her father died five years ago, she wanted to continue sending $5,000 every month to her mother, which allegedly became a frequent source of conflict between the couple.
The family also claimed that the couple had a huge argument over her salary and financial support for her mother a day before her death. Her uncle expressed his regret and said that the family advised her to “adapt” and return to her husband despite her complaints of being subjected to harassment.
Her younger brother also rejected the possibility of suicide, insisting that she “would never end her life” and demanded strict action against her husband and in-laws.
