KALABURAGI : A man, whose married daughter died under mysterious circumstances here last October 23, has launched a lone battle to bring those responsible for her death to justice.
Chennappa Gowda, 50, of Gudeballur village in Muktal taluk of Narayanpet district in Telangana, who works at the thermal power plant in Shaktinagar of Raichur district, has put banners in many places, including Tipu Chowk on Kalaburagi-Humnabad Ring Road, seeking information on four people allegedly responsible for the death of his daughter Jayalakshmi.
The banners have pictures of Jayalakshmi’s husband Shankar Reddy, her mother-in-law Savitramma, sister-in-law (elder sister of Reddy) and Dr Lakshmi (younger sister of Reddy). He has also put such banners in Sedam and Shankarpally village.
“They have killed my daughter. I believed a minister and the relatives of my son-in-law, who then asked me not to file a police complaint and promised that they would give me compensation and hand over my granddaughter to my family. But they did not keep their promise and now Shankar Reddy and his family members are absconding,” Chennappa Gowda alleged.
‘Minister told me not to file complaint’
Jayalakshmi married Shankar Reddy, son of Siddareddy and Savitramma of Shankarpally village in Sedam taluk, five years ago. Shankar Reddy and Jayalakshmi have a two-year-old daughter.
Chennappa Gowda said his daughter fell ill last year and was admitted to a local hospital by her in-laws. However, she died on October 23. Suspecting that Jayalakshmi’s husband and in-laws might have killed her for more dowry, he went to Shaktinagar police station in Raichur district to file a complaint. At that time, the minister called him over the phone and asked him not to file any complaint and promised that minister would get him compensation from the Reddy family.
The minister also promised him that Jayalakshmi’s daughter would be handed over to him soon. “Believing this, I did not file any complaint against my son-in-law and his family,” Chennappa Gowda added. Accordingly, Jayalakshmi’s in-laws signed an agreement stating that they would return 30 grams of gold and Rs 10 lakh taken as dowry at the time of her marriage.
Apart from agreeing to hand over Jayalakshmi’s daughter, they also promised to give 10 acres of land for his granddaughter’s maintenance. The land was to be registered in his granddaughter’s name, he said. “When I contacted some legal experts, they told me that filing a police complaint now suspecting foul play in my daughter’s death would be of little help as she died a year ago. They also told me that I may not get the dowry money and ornaments as the agreement was not a registered document. With no help forthcoming, I have launched a struggle seeking justice to my daughter,” he said.