Nikki Bhati, 28, was hopeful that “good days will come”, while suffering torture by her husband and his family over dowry demands ever since her marriage in 2016 in Greater Noida. Her sister suffered, too, as she was married into the same family in village Sirsa.
On Thursday, the torture escalated.
Greater Noida horror: Son watched as mother killed
Nikki's six-year-old son recounted: “Meri mumma ke upar kuch dala, fir unko chanta mara, fir lighter se aag laga di (They poured something on my mother; slapped her and then set her ablaze with a lighter)."
After the murderous assault — she was beaten, dragged, burnt, left to die — Nikki succumbed to her injuries within hours at a hospital in Delhi. Her sister Kanchan managed to partially video-record the assault before she passed out of a beating she got too.
Nikki's husband Vipin Bhati was caught on Saturday even as he tried to portray the death as suicide with emotional posts on social media. He is in hospital now, after he was shot in the leg as he tried to escape from police custody on Sunday.
Nikki's family says she complained earlier
Nikki's family said she did complain to them about the harassment. “We brought her back home also a couple of times, but she was taken back on promises. But it kept going on,” her mother told reporters.
{{/usCountry}}Nikki's family said she did complain to them about the harassment. “We brought her back home also a couple of times, but she was taken back on promises. But it kept going on,” her mother told reporters.
{{/usCountry}}“She said good days will come eventually,” the mother said.
Instead, Nikki Bhati became another victim of dowry, an age-old practice outlawed decades ago yet widely prevalent.
Her family said they had given Vipin a car, a motorcycle and gold, “but he wanted even more”.
“He is not human. He is a monster,” Nikki's father said.
Husband says 'died on her own'
Vipin Bhati said it was all normal between his wife and him.
“Fights between husband and wife are common,” he said from the hosiptal bed when confronted with videos of the assault.
“I have no remorse as I have done nothing. She died on her own,” he claimed, just hours after being injured in a police encounter.
What is the status of murder case in Noida dowry killing?
The woman's family has demanded a popular form of retribution: an encounter killing and razing of Vipin's home. People in Sirsa village took the the streets, too, demanding swift justice.
Greater Noida ADCP Sudhir Kumar said a case has been registered on charges of murder, criminal conspiracy, and other relevant sections.
Vipin's mother Daya, father Satyaveer, and brother Rohit, remain to be arrested.