Newly Married Woman Dies In Odisha Village; Husband, Father-In-Law Held Over ‘Dowry Murder’

Dhenkanal: Barely a month after her marriage, a woman died under mysterious circumstances at a village in Odisha’s Dehenkanal district with her parents alleging that she was beaten to death by her in-laws.

The deceased woman, identified as Lakhmipriya Patnaik of Puruna Patanda village in Athagarh area of Cuttack district, had got married to Debi Prasad Mohanty of Jhumpudia in Dhenkanal on March 11, this year, sources said.

The woman was recently taken to a hospital following illness, but doctors declared her dead.

Following the incident, her father Pradeep Patnaik and family members lodged a complaint at Bhapur police station alleging that Lakhmipriya was murdered for dowry.

Based on the complaint, a case of dowry murder was registered and the deceased woman’s husband Debi Prasad Mohanty and father-in-law were arrested by the police. Further investigation is in progress.

According to the complaint made by the family of the woman, her in-laws were demanding additional dowry of Rs two lakh. It was alleged Rs one lakh had been given as dowry, but Rs two lakh more was demanded after the marriage.

Her father claimed that he had promised his daughter’s in-laws to give the money by selling his land. However, they murdered her instead of waiting, he alleged.