Lucknow: A social media influencer has been found dead at her in-laws’ residence in Lucknow, and police are treating it as an alleged dowry harassment case. Her family asserts that her husband Sagar Rajput and other relatives killed her because they wanted a car, then hung her corpse to make it look like she had committed suicide.
Mansi, originally from Kanpur, tied the knot with Rajput in 2024, as stated in the police FIR. Both maintained active online presences, with Rajput flaunting almost 8 lakh followers on Instagram, as reported by NDTV.
Mansi’s relatives said they handed over Rs 7 lakh in cash along with assorted household goods as ‘gifts’ during the wedding. Even then, Rajput’s family allegedly conti
nued to feel unsatisfied.
They continued to press for additional dowry, specifically a car, Mansi’s family has claimed, noting that from the day of the marriage she was constantly mocked and belittled for not bringing enough dowry.
After their demands fell short, Mansi allegedly faced both physical and psychological abuse, her family said. She had shared details of the mistreatment with her kin, who had even made multiple trips to Lucknow to mediate and patch things up between the couple.
On Saturday, the family said they received news that their daughter had taken her own life. But they firmly argue it was murder staged to look like a suicide.
A dowry death case has been registered against Rajput and five other family members following a written complaint from the victim’s family, police said. The accused comprise Sagar Rajput, the victim’s father-in-law Rajesh, brother-in-law Anu, sisters-in-law Barkha and Chandni, and paternal aunt-in-law Asha. Rajput is presently in custody and being questioned.
This dowry-related case comes at a time when a high-profile CBI inquiry is underway into the dowry death of model Twisha Sharma in Bhopal, a story that has captured national attention for the last two weeks. In another Lucknow case, similar dowry accusations have also come up in connection with the death of a woman called Shweta Singh.