By Seekriti Saha
Pune: On 21st August, 26-year-old Nikki Bhati, from Greater Noida was burned alive succumbed to death while being transferred to the Delhi Safdarjung Hospital. Married into Sirsa village in 2016, Nikki and her sister Kanchan were subjected to household abuse and torture over dowry demands. According to the updated data of National Crime Bureau (NRCB), over 20 women die over the cause of dowry demands every 24 hours in India.
Nikki’s husband Vipin had got lavish gifts including a car and gold during her wedding and the in-laws demanded more including a Scorpio SUV, gold, cash and a Royal Enfield motorcycle.
By August 21, the victim told Vipin that she wanted to reopen the beauty parlor to which he opposed, further escalating into assault. “Husband and wife fights are normal”, said Vipin to Investigators. An empty thinner bottle and lighter were found from the crime scene. Video of the victim being assaulted has surfaced in the media, drawing concerns from public at large.
Women’s rights activist Yogita Bhayana told PTI: “I recently attended a wedding in Noida, and it was horrifying. I saw luxury cars- Fortuners, Mercedes—being openly gifted as dowry. Politicians were there, celebrating. I couldn’t tolerate witnessing such glorification of dowry and left.”
Bhayana said that it is often portrayed that parents of victims are victims themselves, but sometimes they enable such situations as for Nikki when she expressed the harassment to her parents, they sent her back to the in-laws multiple times as they had feared what the society will say.
Another case of dowry has surfaced recently. A school lecturer of Sarnada Ki Dhani village Kaklev in Jodhpur, Sanju Bishnoi has poured petrol and set herself and her three-year-old daughter on fire on 22nd of August.
The police had recovered a suicide note where the victim had mentioned clearly that she was physically abused by her husband, Dilip and her in laws for dowry.