A 19-year-old college student died by suicide at Kondotty in Kerala’s Malappuram on Tuesday after being allegedly shamed by her husband for being dusky and not knowing English.

Shahana Mumtaz had got married to Abdul Wahid, an accountant in a medical company in Abu Dhabi, on May 27 last year.

The couple stayed together for 22 days in Kerala before Wahid flew back to Abu Dhabi to rejoin duty. Upon his return, Wahid had a change of mind and claimed that Mumtaz had a dark complexion and was not fluent in English.

Mumtaz’s uncle told The Telegraph that she was shattered and had withdrawn into a shell. “She stopped taking food, didn’t sleep properly and found it difficult to concentrate in class. Finally, she confided in her parents that Wahid had disowned her,” Salam said.

The first-year BSc mathematics student was taken to a psychologist in Kozhikode who prescribed medicines
for depression and lack of sleep. “Her parents were happy to see her go back to
college as they felt that the treatment had yielded results,” he said.

However, Mumtaz was found hanging in her room on Tuesday morning.

A case of unnatural death has been registered, K.C. Sethu, deputy superintendent of police of Kondotty, said.