HYDERABAD:It was arguably the most publicised and indisputably the most controversial marriage in Andhra Pradesh’s recent past. In October 2007, a boy eloped with the younger daughter of K Chiranjeevi, giving the actor-politician and his family sleepless nights.
Forty-three months down the lane, the ‘villain’ in that story is today running from pillar to post. For, G R Shirish Bharadwaj is charged with harassing his wife Srija. Sirish, an event manager, is now an accused in a dowry harassment case. He faces an imminent arrest after all the doors he knocked to secure an anticipatory bail shut. The Supreme Court has asked him to surrender before a Hyderabad court, leaving Sirish with no option but to give up.
Shirish was charged with harassing his wife for additional dowry and ill-treating her. His mother, Suryamani, also stands an accused in the case which was registered with the Central Crime Station (CCS) sleuths on March 14 this year. Srija claims Shirish never allowed her to meet her family ever since she gave birth to a child and they sought a patch-up with her. The woman further alleges that Shirish and his mother were harassing her over petty issues. The husband also allegedly was demanding Rs 50 lakh as additional dowry and also re-registering of Srija’s properties on his name. Srija’s patience ran out after Shirish denied her permission to attend a cousin’s wedding.
All through her alleged ordeal at her in-law’s house, Srija was reportedly in touch with her family members over phone. She even sent mails to them about the harassment meted out to her. That has also become one of the focal areas of the police investigation.
Finally, Srija left her in-law’s place and reached her parent’s house. That was when she filed a complaint with the CCS. The case was registered under Sections 498-a (subjecting a married woman to cruelty) and under relevant sections of Dowry Prohibition Act. That has sent Shirish on the run, knocking the doors of the court for an anticipatory bail. But the fuel is fast exhausting.