'Verdict Against Social Evil': Indian Court Rules Man Guilty of Abetting Wife's Dowry Suicide

A 22-year-old woman hung herself last year after her husband physically assaulted and pressurised her to seek more dowry from her parents. The young woman's death has sparked outrage in the Indian state of Kerala.

A Kerala court has convicted a man for abetting his wife to commit suicide in June 2021 over a dowry reproach.

"This is a verdict against a social evil and not just against one person," the special public prosecutor said on Monday, adding that the court is expected to declare the sentence on Tuesday.

Government employee S. Kiran Kumar and Vismaya V. Nair got married in May 2020.

The bride's family gave Kumar 1.25 acres of land, 100 sovereigns of gold and a Toyota Yaris car in dowry, costing them approximately INR 1.1 million ($14,190).

However, Kumar and his family were not satisfied with the amount, with the man allegedly psychologically torturing and physically assaulting Nair on several occasions, demanding more money and a better car.

Two days before Nair's death, she had sent messages to her cousin detailing the brutal domestic violence, along with photographs showing injuries on her face, shoulder, and hands. She asked her cousin to not share the messages.

On a previous occasion, Nair's parents had filed a complaint against Kumar after he hit their daughter in front of them. However, at the time, police insisted that both sides should reach a compromise.

Although the age-old practice of paying dowry has been banned in India since 1961, it is still common in various areas.

As part of dowry, the bride's parents give outlandish gifts to the bridegroom and his family, which may include highly expensive jewellery, a portion of property, electronic gadgets, vehicles, furniture, clothes, and sweets.

In India, dowry-related deaths are punished under section 304B of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and carry a sentence between seven years and life imprisonment.

From 2016 to March 2022, the southern Indian state of Kerala reported 83 dowry deaths. Ten of which were reported in 2021.