Siddarth Sethia
The Sudduguntepalya police have arrested a techie turned panipuri vendor following the death of one and half month old pregnant wife in a suspicious manner at their house in BTM layout on Thursday.
The accused identified as Praveen,worked as a software engineer and quit his job a year after the marriage to Shilpa B Panchangamatha,27,the victim,and running a pani puri selling shop .
The couple had one -year-old-10-month-old son and shilpa was one and half month old pregnant .
The Sudduguntepalya police registered the case under Section 80 (dowry death) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and relevant sections of the Dowry Prohibition Act.
The FIR was filed on Wednesday, following a complaint bySharada B Panchangamatha,mother of the victim.
Ms.Sharada in her complaint said that,Shilpa,worked as a software engineer with a city-based prominent firm till her child was born,was married to Praveen,who is in his thirties, from Kolar in 2022.The families agreed to the match as both were techies.
“The wedding expenses were around Rs.35 lakh,and the groom was given a dowry of 150 grams of gold ornaments.
A year after the wedding, Praveen quit his job and began selling pani puri at BTM Layout,”the FIR quoted Sharada as saying.
“After the wedding,Praveen and his mother,Shantavva, tortured Shilpa physically and mentally to bring more money.
Shantavva even told my daughter that she was not the right match for Praveen,and if she leaves him,they would remarry him with someone more appropriate.
Unable to bear the torture Shilpa had come home four months ago, but the parents after speaking to praveen and his family reconciled and sent her back.
Once I had sent my daughter back after giving her Rs.5 lakh cash,”the FIR added.
On August 26, at around 9.15 pm, they were informed that Shilpa had died by suicide at their house in BTM 1st Stage.Her body was found on the bed in her room, covered with a bedsheet.
Speaking to the media,one of Shilpa’s relatives questioned the circumstances of her death.
“If she had died by suicide,how did they [her husband and his family] remove her body before the police arrived,and why did they initially claim that it was a heart attack.It is a pre-planned murder.
She was also one-and-a-half months pregnant at the time of the death,” the man,who identified as a close relative,alleged.
One of Shilpa’s sisters alleged that she was murdered. “Her mother-in-law used to body shame her frequently using cuss words and call her short and dark .They have murdered her.
They are lying that it was death by suicide.She was also being tortured frequently,”Soumya told the media.
