Allegedly tortured for dowry, victim lies in coma

Kavita’s father, Radheyshyam, alleges that his daughter is a victim of her in-laws’ brutality. “And this is not the first time that she has been hospitalised because I have failed to buy a scooter for her husband, Vijay Singh.”

On February 21, Kavita — a resident of Vasant Gaon in the Vasant Vihar police station area — was reportedly pushed down from the terrace of her house by her in-laws. She survived, but sustained fractures on her legs.It took almost two months for the wounds to heal. Though Kavita stayed with her parents during this period, she returned to her-in-laws after they `apologised’ for the incident.

Her ordeal, however, however resumed as soon as she went back. And this time it left her on the verge of death.

Radheyshyam says that he received a call from the police — and not Kavita’s in-laws — on May 16 that his daughter was in a serious condition and had been admitted at Safdarjung hospital .

“When I went there, I noticed bruises all over her body. Some portions of her neck, arms and neck had turned blue. She was barely breathing, though she was on artificial respiration. The doctors told me that she had gone into a coma,” says a sobbing Radheyshyam.

A doctor at the ICU, requesting anonymity, told Express Newsline that it was difficult to gauge whether Kavita will ever be able to speak again. “Her vocal chords as well as her windpipe have been severely damaged. It looks like she had consumed some chemicals or had been forced to do so. It is also possible that someone had tried to throttle her.”

Radheyshyam went to the Vasant Vihar police station on the same day and narrated all previous instances of his daughter being tortured because of the scooter.

He says: “I told them that I was still paying off the loans incurred during her marriage and therefore I could not buy one. If I knew that my daughter would reach this state I would have done something drastic to save her life.”

A case under Section 498A (husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty) of the Indian Penal Code was registered after Radheyshyam told the police that he had evidence to substantiate his allegations.

He says: “All her neighbours at Vasant Gaon told me that the incident had occurred around midnight of May 15 because they had heard her screams. Her in-laws first took her to a nursing home, but had to shift her to Safdarjung after the doctors at the nursing home expressed their inability to treat her.”

More importantly, says Radheyshyam, Kavita’s in-laws did not bother to inform him about her condition. “If she had attempted suicide, they should have told me immediately.”

Added to this is his claim that subsequently he has been threatened with suffering the same `misfortune’ as Kavita if he pushed “matters too far”.Though the local police are investigating the case, the area SDM Devender Singh is conducting a separate inquiry. Devender Singh is currently on leave and is expected to join work on Tuesday.

The police, on the other hand, say that they are waiting for the SDM’s report which will be submitted only if the girl gives a statement. “We know that she can’t speak now, but we are hoping that she comes out of coma and gives a statement in writing. We will have the true story only then,” says a police official.