New Delhi: Earlier this week, a 27-year-old woman was found dead in South Bengaluru. As the police probed the allegations of dowry harassment and domestic abuse, which led to her death, they unearthed a shocking revelation.
The victim, Shilpa Panchangamath, was married to Praveen for almost three years. He was formerly an engineer at Oracle and later quit his job to run a panipuri business. The couple had a one-and-a-half-year-old son. Before getting married, Shilpa was an employee at Infosys, and her family has claimed that at the time of her death, she was pregnant.
What has Shilpa's family alleged?
Shilpa's family has levelled serious allegations against Praveen. Her uncle, Channabasayya, claimed she was murdered while speaking to reporters outside the mortuary.
He said, "She has been married to him for three years. They have one son, and she is also pregnant. They had a quarrel, which we resolved, and we sent her back four months ago after meeting his family. If he didn't want to be with her, he could have just sent her back. Yesterday, he left home saying he was going out of town, and then we got information that she had died by suicide. But there was no stool below the fan, and she could not even reach the fan. It seems like he murdered her and escaped."
He added, "We sold our house in Hubballi worth Rs 40 lakh to get her married. Recently, we paid another Rs10 lakh through money we had in chit funds. He told us he was an engineer, but now he sells panipuri. He lied to our family."
Shilpa was taunted over her skin colour
Shilpa, who married Praveen on December 5, 2022, was allegedly harassed by him and his mother with demands of extra money despite her parents spending Rs 35 lakh on the wedding, in addition to giving 150 grams of gold jewellery and household items to the groom's family.
Shilpa's mother, Sharada, has alleged that she was assaulted and sent back parents' home six months ago when Praveen's demand of Rs 5 lakh to support his food business was not met. The money was eventually given to Praveen, but the harassment continued.
Also, her mother-in-law allegedly said, "You are dark and not a good match for my son. Leave him, we will find him a better bride." The police have registered a case of unnatural death and dowry harassment and are probing the case.
