Balasore Town police on Thursday night registered a case against Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Law and Information Technology Raghunath Mohanty and his family members for allegedly torturing their daughter-in-law for dowry.
Police sources said Barsa Swony Choudhury, daughter of Kamalakanta Choudhury of Bhoisahi had married to Raja Shree Mohanty, son of Raghunath Mohanty of Amarda Road on June 24, 2012. In the written complaint to the police, she alleged that she was subjected to physical and mental torture by her in-laws for dowry a few days after the marriage.
She claimed that Rs 10 lakh was given to her in-laws as per their demand at the time of marriage. “But they demanded ` 25 lakh and a Scorpio vehicle. They started torturing me when my parents failed to meet their demand,” she stated in the FIR. Failing to bear the trauma, she left her in-law’s house. The matter was settled on intervention of some relatives. But the torture did not stop and she finally came back to her parents’ house on February 25.
“On March 13, three unidentified persons threatened me with dire consequences if I complain to police,” she stated. After the FIR was lodged, police registered a case against Raghunath Mohanty and his family. Contacted, the Minister refuted the allegations saying that it was a conspiracy to tarnish his image.