Woman dies under suspicious circumstances in Danapur

Patna: A 30-year-old married woman died under suspicious circumstances in Patna’s Danapur on Sunday, with her family alleging that she was murdered by her husband and in-laws over dowry demands.The deceased, identified as Chandni Kumari, wife of Birju Kumar Rai, lived on Hathikhan Anand Bazar Road under the Danapur police station limits. Police reached the spot after receiving information, sent the body for post-mortem at the Danapur sub-divisional hospital, and later handed it over to the family.Chandni’s brother, Suraj Kumar, a resident of Latrahiya village in Saran district, said she had married Birju, a private school teacher, in 2022.

He alleged that ever since the marriage, Chandni had been subjected to harassment and physical assault for failing to meet her in-laws’ demand for a four-wheeler as dowry.According to Suraj, Chandni had lodged a written complaint at Danapur police station about a year ago alleging harassment by her in-laws. However, the matter was settled after the accused assured the family that such incidents would not recur.Suraj said he had spoken to his sister briefly over the phone on July 4.

Later, he received the information about her death. The family has alleged that Chandni was strangled, claiming there were deep injury marks on her neck.Danapur SHO Prashant Kumar Bhardwaj said the woman died under suspicious circumstances and confirmed that the husband has been taken into custody for questioning. He said the exact cause of death will be determined after the post-mortem report, and police are investigating all possible angles.“The police received the information that the woman died after she hanged herself. The police reached the hospital, where she died. It is premature to say whether she committed suicide or murder, as the woman’s in-laws claim that they brought down the body and took her to the hospital,” the SHO said.