Dowry demands, beatings never stopped, alleges family of 25-yr-old woman who fell to death

New Delhi: “A bike, a 32-inch LED TV, furniture... all this still wasn’t enough. They kept asking for more, beating her up,” claimed Suresh, a farmer and father of 25-year-old Veena Kumari, who died on Monday night after allegedly falling from the terrace of her home in west Delhi’s Dasghara village.Veena was the second among six siblings in a farming family from UP’s Sambhal. She had studied till Class XII and briefly worked a private job between 2017 and 2018, sending her earnings home to support the education of her younger brother, Rajkumar (22), now a law student.According to the family, despite their limited means, they gave the dowry as demanded when Veena got married to Raju, a helper at a private firm, in Dec 2022. The family alleged that the harassment began within six months of the marriage after Veena moved to Delhi.“The first fight happened a year after they wed,” Rajkumar told TOI. “Didi called me over. I saw nail scratches all over her, and they had slammed her head against the wall.” He further alleged that during one assault, a slap ruptured her eardrum.Even while pregnant, she was forced to cook on a traditional wood-fired stove, and the beatings continued right after she gave birth to a child, Rajkumar alleged, adding that the in-laws taunted her over medical expenses despite the baby being delivered at a govt hospital.

“We wanted to approach the police but village elders stepped in to mediate a settlement through a panchayat and told us not to file a complaint,” her brother said.Veena was kept financially dependent on her in-laws and often sought Rajkumar’s help. “I used to secretly send her money so she could buy supplies for her infant son,” he said.The family alleged that the abuse worsened after the April 25 wedding of her brother-in-law.

Raju’s family received a larger dowry and began comparing and humiliating Veena’s family over it, alleged Rajkumar.On May 18 at 9.55pm, Veena made a frantic call to her elder sister Reena (34), in which she allegedly told her that her in-laws were beating her, and begged to be saved. Seven minutes later, the family received a call informing them that she had fallen. “In the last call she made, she emphasised that if she died, we should take care of her son,” the brother said.Police have arrested Raju and his younger brother and sent them to judicial custody.