NRI woman files dowry complaint

AHMEDABAD: A 25-year-old NRI woman, who hails from Ahmedabad, on Thursday filed a complaint of dowry harassment with Anandnagar police stating that her husband had demanded 35,000 New Zealand dollars (more than Rs 16 lakh) from her to buy a car in Oakland, New Zealand, where the couple has been living since 2015.

The complainant, whose parents live in the Satellite area of the city, said in her FIR that she fell in love with a man from the same area and they decided to get married. Their caste was different and the man’s family was not happy with the idea. Nevertheless, they registered their marriage in November 2013, said the FIR. The husband moved to New Zealand on a student’s visa in 2014. In 2015, the woman also went to Oakland.

The woman alleged that her husband frequently received calls from his mother. She said in the FIR that the calls instigated the husband to turn violent. “Once I was beaten so badly that I had miscarriage in the third month of pregnancy,” she said.

Later, her husband developed the habit of drinking and used to beat her while drunk, the FIR said. “My husband started demanding money from my parents,” the FIR said. “In June, he demanded the money for the car from my parents. My parents were able to give him 20,000 NZ$ but he was not happy and he began torturing me.”

The woman said that her parents gave all the money her husband wanted, but the torment did not end. She said she then left his home and began living with her sister in Oakland. She said in the FIR that she became depressed and returned to Ahmedabad.