NAYAGARH: A 22-year-old woman was found hanging at her house in Adabandha village under Itamati police station limits in Nayagarh district on Saturday, with her family accusing her husband and in-laws of subjecting her to prolonged harassment over dowry.
The deceased was identified as Laxmipriya Barik. Laxmipriya had married Danda Pani Barik (28) of Pratap Prasad village around six years ago. Her family claimed that she faced physical and mental harassment over additional dowry demands since shortly after her marriage. She had reportedly been staying at her parental home for the past three to four months following alleged harassment at her in-laws’ house.
Laxmipriya recently returned to her in-laws’ house after her brother-in-law reportedly assured them that she would not face further physical abuse. However, her mother alleged that Laxmipriya called home a day after returning and said she was being beaten again.
Her mother reportedly advised her to leave the house and return. She subsequently stopped answering calls. She further alleged that the family had already provided dowry at the time of marriage and was unable to meet further demands.
Laxmipriya’s family claimed she was killed inside her in-laws’ house after the door was locked from inside. They accused her husband, mother-in-law and father-in-law of being involved in killing her.
Following a complaint, Itamati police reached the spot and began an investigation. The mother-in-law was detained for questioning, while the husband and father-in-law are suspected to have fled the area.
The cause and circumstances of Laxmipriya’s death will be established following the postmortem report, police said. Police are examining the allegations made by her family and gathering evidence to determine the circumstances surrounding her death.
