Husband Allegedly Pushed Wife To Suicide, Dad Says It Was Murder

A man in the Indian state of Maharashtra was arrested over his wife's alleged suicide, according to police, but the deceased woman's family claimed she did not take her own life and was instead murdered.

Emanuel N Ulidri, 26, informed his wife's parents that their daughter died by suicide last Saturday, newspaper the Hindustan Times reported.

Ulidri’s 24-year-old wife, identified as Darshika, was taken to Rajawadi Hospital, where doctors declared her dead, according to police. Her cause of death was hanging, an autopsy report found.

Authorities were not able to find a suicide note, but they claimed Ulidri tortured his wife "mentally and physically."

"She was under tremendous mental pressure and took the extreme step," Nitin Unhavne, senior inspector of Bhandup police station, said.

Darshika was "completely fine" on the night before her demise, according to assistant police inspector H Bhingare. But she sent a message to Ulidri minutes before her death to apologize for her "cheating."

Ulidri reportedly showed police a WhatsApp message from Darshika, but it was unclear if the service was used to send her an apology message.

Naresh Solanki, Darshika's father, claimed Ulidri knew the password to her daughter's phone, which would have made it possible for him to send the apology message.

Solanki accused Ulidri of being over-possessive and tracking his daughter's phone. The father also claimed Ulidri would beat Darshika and that she had to leave her job due to the "tremendous pressure" she felt.

"Darshika told me and my wife how Emanuel was short-tempered and would often beat her over small things," Solanki claimed.

"Emmanuel would drop his wife at the office and pick her up back home. On June 4, when Darshika went to her office in an autorickshaw, Emanuel assaulted her with bamboo, and she was admitted to a hospital," he added.

In another incident on Jan. 18, Ulidri beat Darshika after the latter asked about a phone call he had, according to Solanki. Darshika allegedly locked herself inside a bathroom, but she was later assaulted by Ulidri again.

Despite Solanki's allegations, police noted that a post-mortem report showed no signs of a murder.

"According to the woman’s parents, the accused was very possessive about their daughter. The woman was so much frustrated from his violent behavior that she had filed for divorce. But they were still together," Bhingare said.

Police have since arrested Ulidri under Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Penal Code, a report by the Times of India said.

Darshika's phone would be forwarded for forensic examination, according to Bhingare.

If you have thoughts of suicide, confidential help is available for free at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Call 1-800-273-8255. The line is available 24 hours, every day.