G. Eknath Reddy, a grandson of prominent sweet shop owner and educationist late G Pulla Reddy, was booked by Punjagutta police on Friday evening on charges of domestic violence.
His parents G. Raghava Reddy and Bharati Reddy, and sister G Srividya Reddy were also booked for allegedly harassing his wife K Pragnya Reddy and demanding additional dowry. The family allegedly confined Ms. Pragnya and her seven-and-half-year-old daughter in their house at Begumpet without providing food and water. However, she managed to call the Punjagutta police and lodged a telephonic complaint. Later, her father reached Hyderabad from Bengaluru and rescued the mother-daughter duo.
In her complaint, the victim told the police that she was married to Eknath Reddy in March 2014 at a star hotel in Bengaluru and her parents gave a dowry of ₹ 75 lakh in cash, apart from gold jewellery and silver articles worth more than ₹ 55 lakh. Later, she came to know that her husband was suffering from blood cancer, which was not informed during the wedding. As she is the only daughter, the Pulla Reddy family demanded that her parents buy a commercial property as additional dowry. When they refused, the family members threatened the victim and her parents and filed a divorce petition before Family Court. Her interim petitions for an injunction to restrain her in-laws from evicting her from the house and another petition for maintenance are still pending adjudication, Ms. Pragyna Reddy told police.
“They are trying to get rid of me from the house and on May 10, my husband and in-laws attempted to kill me by smothering me with a pillow. I had suffocated and rescued myself with great difficulty,” she said, adding that immediately when she tried to lodge a police complaint, they threatened to kill her minor daughter.
“But to my utter surprise and shock, they constructed a wall overnight on the first floor of the house, blocking access to me and my daughter. Later, they locked the house and disappeared. There was no water or food. I managed to call the police and my parents, who rescued me,” Ms. Pragnya Reddy said.
A case under Sections 498(A), 341 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 3 and 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act, was registered against Eknath, his parents and sister. A probe is on.
