26-year-old woman alleges harassment by husband, in-laws

Navi Mumbai

Navi Mumbai

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A 26-year-old Thane based woman lodged a dowry harassment case against her husband and in-laws with the Kamothe police on Wednesday.

The woman has also accused her father-in-law for allegedly molesting her last year when she was pregnant.

According to the Kamothe police, the woman alleged physical torture by her in-laws, barely four months into her marriage.

She got married to a 30-year-old man in May 2017 and they have an 18-month-old son.

She alleged that her two sisters-in-law started taunting her over household work and insulted her by saying her parents did not spend anything on the wedding. She told police that her mother, who works at a food stall, spent ₹6.21 lakh for the wedding.

In November 2017, when she was pregnant, her father-in-law allegedly went to her room and touched inappropriately.

When she fled to the kitchen, he followed her there and sexually assaulted her. When she threatened to tell her husband about his behaviour, he apologised, she said.

She and her husband started living separately from his parents. However, a few months later, he started beating her after getting drunk.

She lodged a non cognisable complaint against him and left him to stay at her mother’s house.

A few months later, when her husband promised to change, they lived at a rented apartment but he again fell back to his old habits, she alleged. She lodged another complaint with the police in August this year.

The complainant and her husband underwent counselling at the women’s cell, but they did not arrive at a compromise and she decided to file a case against her in-laws, said an officer at the Kamothe police station.

While the woman has pressed charges of molestation along with dowry harassment and assault, the police said they will investigate the case before making any arrest.