A Ghaziabad court has sentenced a man to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment for murdering his wife within three months of their marriage in 2018 and attempting to pass it off as suicide. The court also imposed a fine of ₹27,000, directing the amount to be paid to the victim’s mother.
The victim, Neha Jaijania, was found hanging at her rented home in Indirapuram on June 25, 2018. Her mother, Sunita Rani, alleged that Neha’s husband, Rahul Agrawal, along with his parents, had been harassing her for dowry, demanding a car and ₹10 lakh soon after the marriage.
Police registered a case under IPC Sections 304B (dowry death) and 498A (cruelty), along with provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. While Rahul was arrested the same day, investigators later found no evidence against his parents and filed charges only against him.
During the trial, the prosecution presented multiple witnesses, including family members. The victim’s mother testified about sustained harassment and a heated argument between the couple on the day of the incident, after which Neha was found dead.
The defence argued it was a love marriage with no dowry demands and claimed the victim was under stress due to family pressure over an inter-caste union.
However, the court held that the death occurring so soon after marriage, along with evidence of harassment, supported the dowry death charge. It noted that Rahul, who was present at the time, failed to provide a satisfactory explanation.
Additional Sessions Judge Arwind Mishra convicted him under Section 304B IPC (dowry death), sentencing him to 20 years’ RI, along with three years under Section 498A and two years under the Dowry Prohibition Act. All sentences will run concurrently.
The court also ordered departmental action against a police investigator for allegedly attempting to compromise the investigation.
