Woman commits suicide just 19 days after wedding

By Praveen Kumar | NT

Bengaluru: Less than three weeks after her wedding, twenty one year old Manjula took her own life, unable to tolerate the physical and mental torture her new husband was putting her through. The victim and her husband, Akshay Kumar, an A/C mechanic had been in a relationship for some time before the marriage. Kumar, who is 23, has been arrested by Bellandur police.

On the day of the suicide, Manjula went to her parents’ house in tears over being tortured by her husband. “We consoled her and sent her back to his house,” said the victim’s father, Venkatesh. “We don’t know how they came in contact with each other. She was a good student, going to college. He was neither her classmate nor did he live near our house.”

Although how they met is not clear, the courtship began when Manjula was a student, doing her final year B.Sc at a college near Hudson Circle. On the day of the Varamahalakshmi Festival, Kumar is said to have gone to her house, expressing his interest in marrying her. “We found out about their relationship just two months ago, when he came to our house. Since my daughter was still studying, we rejected his proposal,” Venkatesh said.

Kumar wouldn’t take no for an answer. He talked Manjula into running away with him and the two went off together for nearly two months. “As she was an adult, there was nothing much we could do about it.” The couple tied the knot on October 25 at a temple in Bellandur. On November 12, she consumed rat poison, Venkatesh told NT.

The victim was rushed to a hospital after consuming rat poison. She was in hospital for two days before she succumbed. “After she died, the accused called her parents and informed them of her death. He later disappeared by switching off his mobile phone.”

Manjula’s mother, Gowramma, approached the police and based on her complaint, police filed a case of abetment of suicide under section 306 of the Indian Penal Code.

“After the complaint was registered, we managed to track the accused. He has been arrested and remanded to judicial custody,” said an officer. Bellandur police are investigating further.