India: Man living with HIV and his mother charged with murder and dowry death for alleged HIV non disclosure after his wife’s suicide

Charged

HIV tragedy: Woman’s suicide case reaches HC

March 7, 2017
Source: Bangalore Mirror Bureau

A woman is believed to have committed suicide along with her minor child after realising that her husband was suffering from AIDS. Based on a death note found on her, the police have initiated criminal proceedings against the husband and mother-in-law. The woman had in the death note stated that she was married by deceit without being informed about the disease.

The case was filed by police in the Chikkamagaluru district last year. The bodies of a woman and a child was found in a river on December 26, 2016. The police found a death note in the purse of the woman. The death note said that she had been married for 15 years and came to know recently that her husband suffered from HIV-AIDS from before marriage. Upset with it, she had committed suicide along with her only child.

The tahsildar filed a report on the issue based on which the local police filed a complaint. The husband and his mother were charged with cheating, murder and dowry death. The 75-year-old mother-in-law approached the High Court for bail after it was rejected by a lower court.

Her advocate contended that as per the death note, “It shows that the deceased felt that she was cheated as her husband was suffering from AIDS disease for the last 15 years and this fact was not made known to her by the petitioner. Except this, there are no allegations against the petitioner.” It was argued that there was no dowry harassment made in the complaint. Justice PS Dinesh Kumar who heard the plea accepted the contentions and directed the mother-in-law to surrender before the jurisdictional police before March 7. She would be released on bail after that if she executes a self bond for Rs 50,000.