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Hi everyone,

My name is Shivani Nagar. I am 29 years old and I lost my husband Ankit Dedha when I was just 27. We had been married only one and a half years. What was supposed to be the happiest time of my life turned into a nightmare I still cannot believe. Today I want to share my story with all of you. Maybe it will help other girls and their families understand how quickly things can go wrong.

Our Wedding – 27 February 2020

I got married to Ankit on 27 February 2020 according to Hindu rituals in Delhi. My father spent everything he had. He gave a Honda Amaze car, lots of gold and silver jewellery, expensive clothes, electronic items, furniture, and cash of ₹3,50,000. He did this happily because he wanted me to have a good life.

At first, everything felt normal. My mother-in-law took all my jewellery and said, “You can take it back whenever you want.” I respected everyone — my father-in-law Rajbir Singh Dedha, mother-in-law Rekha, brother-in-law Yogesh Dedha, his wife Sapna, and sister-in-law Dolly. Yogesh and Sapna both work in CISF and are posted in Delhi.

For the first few months, the family behaved nicely. But slowly everything changed.

The Demand for More Money

My in-laws started saying the dowry was not enough. They put pressure on Ankit every day to bring more money from my parents. Ankit worked in Delhi Jail, but he was not happy. He wanted to start his own online business. He needed a lot of money for that.

One day he asked his mother to return my gold and silver jewellery so he could sell it and start the business. They refused straight away. When Ankit asked his father and elder brother for help, they insulted him badly and used very bad words. His father even told him, “If you want money, ask your father-in-law.”

I felt so bad for my husband. He was a calm and humble person. He never fought with anyone. Seeing him sad, I told my own parents. My brothers and father gave Ankit ₹3-4 lakhs to help him.

But things got worse. Ankit invested the money in business and lost everything. He needed almost ₹20 lakhs more to clear the losses. He then asked his family to give him his share of the property so he could manage. Instead of helping, they all shouted at him and even beat him. Ankit got injured in that fight.

The Last Days

Ankit became very tense and worried. He dropped me at my parents’ house in Wazirabad so I could stay safe for some time. He used to visit me often. On 1 October 2021, it was my birthday. He came home, celebrated with us, and we had a very happy day. But even on that day he told us, “I am being tortured by my parents, brother and sister-in-law. I do not feel safe in my own house.”

He promised he would come back after a week and take me home. 

That week never came.

On 5 October 2021, at around 7 a.m., my father-in-law called my father and said, “Ankit is no more.” Then he cut the call.

We were shocked. My family took me to my matrimonial house immediately. When we reached there, my in-laws behaved very rudely with us. I begged them to let me see my husband one last time. They refused. Only when other relatives requested did they finally allow me to see his body.

They told me Ankit had committed suicide with his service belt. My mother-in-law said she found him dead in the morning and they called 100.

They Locked Me Out

The next day, 6 October, I became unconscious because of shock. My brother took me to Divine Hospital because my in-laws did not help. When I came back to perform the last rites, they had locked the door of my room and even the washroom. I had to call the police to get the locks opened.

On 10 October, I went again with my mother. This time my sister-in-law Sapna locked the main door from inside and did not let us enter. They abused me and my mother. They threatened to file false cases against my family. I called 100 again, but the police said, “It is a family matter, we will not interfere.”

I became unconscious once more and had to be taken to the hospital.

My Biggest Fear

I have lost my young husband forever. He was only 28. The way his family is behaving — not letting me enter the house, not letting me perform his last rites, and hiding things — makes me feel something is very wrong. I have a strong feeling that my husband did not commit suicide. I believe his parents, brother Yogesh, sister-in-law Sapna, and sister Dolly planned together and murdered him so they could keep the entire property.

All the memories of my husband are inside that house — our room, our things, our clothes. I have every right to go inside, but they are stopping me.

My Legal Rights and Relevant Court Judgments

I have every right to live in my matrimonial home and to perform my husband’s last rites. Indian law is very clear on this.

Key Laws That Protect Me:

– Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (DV Act)**: Section 17 gives every woman the right to reside in the shared household (matrimonial home) **regardless of whose name the property is in. This right continues even after the husband’s death. Section 19 allows the court to pass a residence order and stop in-laws from locking the wife/widow out. 

– IPC Section 498A**: Cruelty and harassment for dowry. 

– IPC Section 304B (Dowry Death): Applies because my marriage was only 1.5 years old (within 7 years) and there was clear dowry harassment. 

– IPC Sections 306 & 302/34**: Abetment of suicide or murder with common intention.

My Request

I have already written a complaint to the SHO, Police Station Wazirabad, Delhi. I request them to: 

Immediately register an FIR under: 

– Sections 498A, 304B, 306, 302 read with 34 IPC, and 

– File an application under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 for residence orders and protection.

I also request: 

– Police protection so I can enter the house, perform the last rites, and collect my (jewellery, clothes, etc.). 

– Proper investigation of Ankit’s death (post-mortem re-examination, call records, and witness statements). 

– Action against the police officers who refused to help me earlier.

I am a simple girl who only wanted a happy married life. Today I am a widow at 29. I do not want any other girl to go through this pain.

If you are reading this and you are a parent of a daughter, please think twice before giving huge dowry. If you are a married woman facing harassment, please speak up and save records. If you are a mother-in-law or father-in-law, remember that your son’s wife is also someone’s daughter.