E-Paper
Man strangles wife to death over reels, tries to kill self in Delhi
The two were residents of UP's Pilibhit, and the accused worked as an e-rickshaw driver. He remains in custody and is undergoing treatment.
A man allegedly killed his wife over her active presence on social media on Tuesday, and later attempted suicide in Delhi's Najafgarh area, reported PTI citing police.
The accused has been identified as 35-year-old Aman and drives an e-rickshaw. According to police, he objected to his wife making reels and being active on various social media platforms. The police said that she had about 6,000 followers on her social media.
"Preliminary inquiry revealed that Aman objected to her making reels and remaining active on different social media platforms, where she described herself as a social media artist with about 6,000 followers," PTI quoted an officer as saying.
The couple had been married for over 10 years and lived in a rented accommodation in Delhi's Old Roshanpura with their two sons, aged nine and five. They hailed from Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit.
The woman was earlier married to Aman's elder brother, who had also allegedly died by suicide, the report said.
"Matters of domestic abuse have also surfaced during initial inquiry where Aman used to beat his wife for making reels and videos," a senior police officer said.
The couple reportedly had frequent clashes over the wife's use of social media, one of which escalated on Tuesday. Following that, Aman strangled his wife to death and later attempted to die by suicide by hanging and consuming poison. However, he was rescued after the Delhi Police reached the spot just in time and rushed him to Rao Tularam Memorial hospital. A PCR call was received at 4.23 am by their landlord.
"Aman was trying to commit suicide by hanging from a scarf from the ceiling fan when it broke. He started shouting and came out of the house, and said he killed his wife and consumed poison. The landlord saw him first and made a PCR call to the police," the officer said.
The police found the woman dead and the accused is currently undergoing treatment at the hospital.
The body of the woman has been preserved for a post mortem examination and the police have registered a case under relevant provisions of the law, including murder. Further investigation is underway, the report added.
Also read | Nikki Bhati’s death: Greater Noida police to focus probe on direct evidence
This incident comes days after Nikki Bhati's death in Greater Noida, allegedly over dowry demands and her presence on social media.
Nikki's husband Vipin Bhati allegedly set her ablaze after an argument escalated between the two over her posting reels and running a beauty parlour, HT reported earlier.
Nikki and her sister Kanchan, who married Vipin's brother Rohit Bhati, together ran channels on Instagram and YouTube to promote their parlour, and the one on Instagram had 54,500 followers.
Kanchan informed the police that she was burned alive by her husband Vipin Bhati following a dowry dispute. “Kanchan and her in-laws (Vipin’s parents) rushed her from hospital to hospital, as Vipin fled the spot after the incident,” Nikki's brother Rohit Gurjar said.
Their handle was called 'Makeover by Kanchan', and the sisters also had individual accounts. Nikki's private account had 1,147 followers and Kanchan's had 22,000 followers.
(With inputs from PTI)
Discussing suicides can be triggering for some. However, suicides are preventable. A few major suicide prevention helpline numbers in India are 011-23389090 from Sumaitri (Delhi-based) and 044-24640050 from Sneha Foundation (Chennai-based).
