A 24-year-old pregnant woman named Shwetha, who went missing on Tuesday evening, was found dead at Ramakrishna Beach in Visakhapatnam by the police in the early hours of Wednesday, April 26. The Visakhapatnam Commissioner of Police, Thrivikrama Varma, announced at a press conference on Friday that several sections under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including the Dowry Prohibition Act, have been invoked against Shwetha’s in-laws, husband, and her sister-in-law's husband based on her mother’s complaint.
According to Commissioner Varma, Shwetha left her home in Pedagantyada after a dispute with her husband over the phone at around 6:45 pm. At the time of the incident, her in-laws were not present. When they returned home, her in-laws informed her family in Dondaparthy at around 8:45 pm. After failing to locate her, both families filed a missing complaint at the New Port Police Station at midnight. However, the police confirmed the discovery of a body on the sea shore at RK Beach around 12:30 am, which was later identified as Shwetha's.
Commissioner Varma initially suspected that Shwetha might have committed suicide. However, on Wednesday afternoon, Shwetha's mother, Rama, lodged a new complaint at the city's III Town Police Station, accusing her husband and in-laws of physically and mentally harassing her daughter for additional dowry. She also alleged that Satyam, the husband of Shwetha's sister-in-law, had sexually harassed her daughter, but her in-laws had taken no action.
According to the Commissioner, Shwetha married Manikanta, 29, in April last year. Rama claimed that a dowry of Rs 12.5 lakh and 200 grams of gold were given, and 90 cents of land in Kotabommali was registered in Shwetha's name. After the wedding, Shwetha lived with her in-laws, Pushpavati and Shankar Rao, in Nadupuru in Pedagantyada. Shwetha was being harassed by her husband and in-laws since she got married, regarding the additional dowry and the 90-cent land, Rama added in her complaint.
Manikanta allegedly left for Hyderabad for work fifteen days ago without informing Shwetha. According to police, after an argument with her husband, Shwetha left a note and her phone at home. The police booked the accused under IPC 498-A (Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty), 304-B (Dowry death), 354 r/w 34 (Assault or criminal force to a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty), and Sec 3 (Penalty for giving or taking dowry) and 4 (Penalty for demanding dowry) of the Dowry Prohibition Act 1961. The Commissioner stated that further investigation is necessary.