Bhubaneswar: A 31-year-old man was arrested in Bhubaneswar after his wife died under mysterious conditions with her family alleging that the death was due to dowry-related harassment.
Sources said the man, identified as Biswanath Swain, was held by Mancheswar Police after her family brought allegations of continuous torture by his family towards her for dowry. The deceased woman was identified as Rashmita Swain (27).
While the exact reason behind her death is yet to be ascertained, Rashmita’s family members alleged that she was subjected to domestic violence and killed by her in-laws for being unable to get dowry. They further claimed that she was not allowed to access her mobile phone and that they were informed about her death under suspicious circumstances.
As per preliminary investigation, the couple had a love marriage nine years ago and had two children. However, the married life was extremely disturbed and she had to go through rough phases frequently. She kept going back to her maternal house after being allegedly abused by her in-laws, her family members claimed, adding that she used to have frequent conflicts with her husband and his family over dowry demands.
Rashmita’s father used to work as a daily wager and give away all his hard-earned money to meet the demands of her in-laws, said her sister-in-law.
However, Rashmita was constantly abused and often asked to leave the house with her two children. Rashmita had even filed a case once, she claimed.
Alleging foul play in the death of Rashmita, she said, “We could never speak to her as her in-laws denied her access to mobile phone. Suddenly, we received a call asking us to reach the hospital where she had been admitted.”
“After getting a call from her in-laws who said she had been hospitalised, w we rushed to Capital Hospital. However, she had already died. The security guard asked us to take help of police,” said her uncle.
Based on the allegations, police have registered a case and started an investigation. The exact cause of death will be established after getting the postmortem report.
