"they started blaming him for her behaviour"
An Indian woman has alleged that her family have gone through a terrible ordeal as a result of her younger brother’s marriage.
She explained that her brother had an arranged marriage in May 2017.
However, soon after their wedding, he began to notice his wife had constant unexplained health issues. He took her to various specialists but it did not help as it seemed as though she had numerous issues.
Doctors advised the man to take his wife to see a neurologist but that did not help either.
He soon realised that his wife had mental health issues.
According to the Indian woman, her brother talked to his wife about seeing a psychiatrist. Her parents and relatives then started threatening him.
The woman said: “That’s the day they started blaming him for her behaviour and soon they gave us threats such as going to the police, involving goons, involving their influential relatives etc.”
At the time, his wife was pregnant so he ignored the threats and instead focused on her wellbeing.
During the final stages of the sister-in-law’s pregnancy, her in-laws visited her and looked after her. Due to her mental health, her mother-in-law raised the baby.
The woman continued: “However, the threats, unnecessary interference from her family and abuse continued from June 2017 to December 2020.
“She would go to her parents’ home almost every 3 months and would refuse to come back, thereby blackmailing my brother.
“My brother, on the other hand, was always concerned about their toddler’s well being, would listen to all her demands and cope with daily drama, manipulation and harassment.”
In May 2019, the sister-in-law returned to her family home and in August 2019, she told her husband that she would only return if his parents left.
“My brother had no choice but to give into her demand and my parents moved back to our hometown.”
The Indian woman claimed that her sister-in-law physically abused the child between August and December 2019. On one occasion, the child had to get stitches.
The sister-in-law also forgot important childcare needs, meaning that her husband had to balance work and childcare.
“In December 2019, she left my brother’s home again and this time she went to the police along with her father and made a complaint of domestic violence and dowry.
“Since my husband had tried to mediate to normalise things in the past, they also named my husband and me in the complaint.”
Police summoned the family and attempts were made to resolve the matter.
Officers also identified that the sister-in-law had mental health issues. They advised her father to take her to see a specialist.
“She was made to write a statement at the police station stating that she wanted to take the complaint back and would solve issues amicably through mutual understanding in future.
“My brother, once again put their 1½-year-old baby as a priority and brought her back home.
“However, this time he had to call my parents to stay with them, as he couldn’t take any more risks with the wellbeing of the child.”
The sister-in-law was eventually taken to a hospital in Delhi where she was diagnosed with Moderate Depression.
She began treatment and signs of improvement were being shown, however, it was halted in April 2020 due to the lockdown.
In May 2020, the sister-in-law called her father and left home.
Her husband soon received a phone call from the police, telling him to go to the station as his wife had filed a false domestic violence case.
“This time my brother decided not to indulge in any police mediation.
“He requested the police to proceed with the complaint.”
He moved back to his maternal home with his son and parents. He later filed for divorce.
However, his father-in-law pressured the police to resolve the matter.
“He wanted police to arrest all of us including my brother, my parents, my husband and me and wanted the police to forcefully hand over the child to him.”
An investigation is underway.
The Indian woman’s family has provided the police with medical documents and WhatsApp chats that show the sister-in-law’s abusive behaviour towards her husband.
In addition, evidence on false accusations of dowry and threats by the in-laws have also been given.
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