The family of the woman who was shot dead by her husband early Monday on a road in east Delhi’s Kalyanpuri has alleged harassment and abuse over dowry ever since her marriage in 2023.
The victim, identified as Priyanka Bhati, was shot dead by her husband on the road, just hours after she celebrated her birthday at midnight. Priyanka was a teacher at Prudence School in Ashok Vihar.
The accused is her husband Manish Bhati, a Delhi Police constable posted with the Anti-Auto Theft Squad of the East district. He is currently on the run, police said, HT has learnt.
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Family alleges pressure over dowry
Priyanka’s younger brother, Nitin, who is a constable with the Uttar Pradesh Police, said his brother-in-law would often abuse and assault his sister over dowry.
“He would harass my sister and tell her that his sister-in-law had brought ₹70 lakh in dowry, while we could not even manage ₹15 lakh. We had a lot of expectations when the wedding was fixed. One of my sisters is also with the Delhi Police, and we were happy that Priyanka was marrying a policeman. We never knew this would happen,” he said, as reported earlier by HT.
{{/usCountry}}“He would harass my sister and tell her that his sister-in-law had brought ₹70 lakh in dowry, while we could not even manage ₹15 lakh. We had a lot of expectations when the wedding was fixed. One of my sisters is also with the Delhi Police, and we were happy that Priyanka was marrying a policeman. We never knew this would happen,” he said, as reported earlier by HT.
{{/usCountry}}He said that Priyanka had returned to her parental home barely a year after her wedding to Manish, citing pressure and assault and stayed for almost 9 months after which she went back with her husband.
“Manish would assault her regularly, while her in-laws harassed her for dowry. She stayed with us for about nine months. They kept demanding ₹25 lakh. We lodged an FIR with the Delhi Police over dowry harassment and assault, but Manish later apologised and my sister forgave him. But he continued harassing and abusing her,” he said. A case was registered at the Madhu vihar police station in 2024.
‘MIL wanted her full salary’
He further alleged that Priyanka’s mother-in-law would ask her to hand over her entire salary and also harassed her for not having a child. Nitin said he had called his sister on her birthday night to wish her and asked whether she had any plans, to which she replied, “none.”
“We wish she had come home again. We always supported her. My sister was educated. She had completed her BTech, CTech and teachers’ training. He shot her on her birthday and left her to die,” he said.
What police said
According to the police, the couple often fought over dowry and other domestic issues. Investigators suspect Manish was under the influence of alcohol on Sunday night when he returned home from duty and allegedly got into an argument with his wife before assaulting her.
“We are still trying to ascertain the exact sequence of events. Preliminary enquiry suggests that the accused was taking his wife to get medicines or have her injuries treated at a hospital, but they stopped midway and again argued on the road. The woman got off the vehicle. During the argument, the accused pulled out his service pistol and shot his wife in the chest. As she collapsed, he left her there and fled,” said a senior police officer, asking not to be named.
“Initial questioning of neighbours revealed that the couple used to have frequent arguments. Even on Sunday night, neighbours claimed they overheard an argument between the couple before they left home in the middle of the night. We are now questioning their family members,” the senior police officer said.
Matter reported by delivery boy
Police said they received information about the incident at around 3 am from a delivery executive who was passing through the area and spotted the woman lying in a pool of blood.
“A police team rushed her to LBS Hospital, where doctors declared her dead on arrival,” Kumar said.
Priyanka was shot in the chest at point-blank range, police said.