Bride-to-be found dead at fiancee’s home 2 days ahead of marriage in Karnataka; family alleges she was killed over caste issues

Vijayanagara, (Karnataka): A bride-to-be allegedly committed suicide at her fiancée’s residence on Monday in Karnataka’s Vijayanagara district. The family of the bride has alleged that their daughter was killed over caste issues.

Subramani, the father of the bride, stated that his daughter was killed because they belonged to a lower caste. The family of the bridegroom had imposed a condition that none of the bride's family, including her parents, would attend the marriage ceremony.

"We agreed and sent our girl alone to the house of the bridegroom. They planned and killed her," he charged.

According to the police, Ishwarya and Ashok Kumar had been in love for 10 years. They were classmates and employed in reputed private firms.

Ishwarya hailed from the Dalit community, and Ashok Kumar belonged to the Gounder caste. When they decided to get married, Ashok Kumar's family vehemently opposed it at first.

Ishwarya’s parents tried to convince her that she wouldn’t be happy due to the caste differences, however, she managed to get consent from her parents.

Later, Ashok Kumar’s family agreed to the marriage on the condition that Ishwarya’s family would not mingle with their family in the future.

They also mandated that none of them, including the parents, would attend the wedding ceremony, the police said. The family of the girl agreed to these conditions and sent the girl alone to the house of her fiancée. Their marriage was scheduled to be held on November 23.

The pre-wedding ceremonies were held as usual and Ishwarya had participated in them all, but on Monday her body was found hanging.

Ishwarya’s father Subramani maintained that they were informed about the incident two hours later.

"She was taken to three to four hospitals after the incident, but she couldn’t survive. My daughter is a strong person, and she doesn’t have the mindset of killing herself. Proper investigation needs to be done," he alleged.

Subramani also lodged a complaint with the TB Dam Police, alleging that his daughter was killed. The police have initiated an investigation.