Instead of going on a honeymoon, Shubhangi Kumari is running from pillar to post seeking justice for her and her family a fortnight after her marriage. Reason: Her husband, an engineering student, deserted her for dowry.
Shubhangi (18), a resident of Khopi village under Janadaha police station in Vaishali district, lodged a complaint in the court of the chief judicial magistrate, Hajipur, on Friday alleging that her husband and in-laws harassed her for failing to meet their dowry demand. She claimed in her complaint that her husband Kalyan Kumar (22), a student of a Kerala-based engineering college, brothers-in-law Ravi Kumar and Bipin Kumar, father-in-law Suman Prasad and mother-in-law Neelam Kumari assaulted her after her father Bhola Singh failed to give them a car as dowry.
The complaint has been filed under sections 498 (A) (dowry), 323 (assault), 380 (theft of ornaments), 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy), 406 (criminal breach of trust) of the IPC and section ¾ of Dowry Act. Shubhangi’s husband and in-laws were not available for comments.
Shubhangi married Kalyan, the eldest son Suman, in neighbouring Samastipur, at Pataleshwar temple on May 13. The wedding was solemnised according to Hindu rituals with the consent of the families of the bride and the groom, she said in the complaint.
Shubhangi’s father allegedly gave a huge sum of money and ornaments as dowry to Kalyan’s family, the girl’s counsel, Birendra Narayan Singh, told the court.
“The girl spent just three days in her in-laws’ house at Andaur village under Mohiuddin Nagar police station. Subhangi was dumped at her parents’ house after her father failed to meet the dowry demand. They also beat her up,” the counsel said.
Chief judicial magistrate R.N. Tripathy recorded the girl’s statement under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The court directed the complainant’s counsel to produce witnesses to get their statement recorded and examined on the next date of hearing. A huge crowd had assembled on the court premises to listen to the tale of the newly wed girl.
