THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The police probing the death of a newly wed woman in Palode arrested her husband Abhijith, alias Nandu, over suspicions of domestic violence on Sunday. Ajas T A, a friend of the couple, was also held.
The woman, Induja, was found hanging at Abhijith’s house on Friday. They had been in a relationship for two years and got married three months ago against her family’s wishes.
The Palode police, which launched a probe after the woman’s family alleged foul play in her death, have confirmed that Induja died by suicide. However, they are investigating the domestic violence allegations.
During the inquest on Saturday, bruises, believed to be two to three days old, were noticed on Induja’s body. While in custody, Abhijith told the police that Ajas had assaulted Induja inside a car at Shankhumukham two days before her death. Ajas was taken to Shankhumukham for evidence collection. His medical examination was conducted at the Palode Government Hospital. The reason behind the altercation is being probed.
The police had earlier found that the last call Induja received was from Ajas, and that she ended her life shortly after. An analysis of the accused persons’ phones revealed some of the chats had been deleted.
Abhijith’s relatives claimed Induja locked herself in her room after receiving a call on the day she died. Abhijith reportedly found Induja hanging from the window of their bedroom on the first floor of the house when he returned home for lunch.
At the time, only Abhijith’s grandmother was at the home. Abhijith’s family said Induja had been alive when they found her and died while being taken to the district hospital.
The police said the couple used to get into arguments frequently, often involving Induja’s friends and family. They found that Induja ended her life due to persistent mental and physical harassment by the accused.
Charges
The accused duo has been charged with abetment of suicide, causing physical harm, domestic violence, destruction of evidence, and violations under the SC & ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act