A 29-year-old homemaker died in a hospital on Tuesday, triggering allegations of torture by her husband, police said.
Based on a complaint by the woman’s family, the police have arrested the husband and charged him under IPC sections related to causing death due to dowry demand and mental and physical torture.
Mallika Sardar, who was married to Pintu Naskar four months ago, was two months’ pregnant, the police said.
“The preliminary post-mortem report suggests the victim was two months’ pregnant and died of natural reasons. The final report is yet to come,” said an officer at Survey Park police station. Mallika lived with her husband and in-laws in Survey Park.
The police said there were no injury marks on her body.
Mallika’s parents, who live in Kalikapur, not far from her in-laws’ place, have reportedly told the police that they received a call from her in-laws on Tuesday afternoon saying she was unwell.
“When they reached the Survey Park home, they were told that she had been shifted to a hospital where the doctor declared her dead,” said the officer.
The family then lodged a complaint alleging that their son-in-law would regularly torture their daughter for dowry and he was responsible for her death.
“Based on the complaint we received on Tuesday, we arrested the husband. He was produced in court on Wednesday and remanded in police custody till July 12,” said deputy commissioner, east, Kolkata police, Arish Bilal.
Naskar has been charged under Section of 304(b), which deals with death due to dowry demand, and Section 498A, which deals with the offence of cruelty towards a married woman by her husband or/and in-laws, of the Indian Penal Code.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to life imprisonment.
The police said Naskar once gave private tuition to Mallika.
“According to the woman’s family, theirs was a love marriage, apparently without the consent of the families,” an officer said.
The woman’s family is said to have told the police that she had told them about the torture she was being subjected to after marriage.
The Telegraph could not contact Naskar’s family to seek their reaction to the allegations.
An IPS officer at the Kolkata police headquarters in Lalbazar said: “We always encourage women and girls to come forward and report if they are not being treated well or are under any kind of pressure.”