Bareilly: Man strangled two months after love marriage; wife, in-laws booked

BAREILLY: A 33-year-old contract employee of the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) was allegedly strangled to death barely two months after his love marriage, with investigators suspecting that the crime was initially staged to appear as a suicide. Police have filed a case against the victim’s wife and her family, citing a dispute over ancestral property and demands for a car and a house.Jitendra Yadav, a native of Etawah, was found hanging in his rented room in Bareilly’s Izzatnagar area on Jan 26. His family initially believed he had died by suicide following alleged harassment and lodged a complaint under charges of abetment against his wife, Jyoti Prajapati, and her relatives.

However, the post-mortem report later established that the cause of death was strangulation, prompting police to convert the case into one of murder and intensify the investigation.In a police complaint, Jitendra’s brother, Ajay Kumar, said that Jyoti, a resident of Durganagar colony in Bareilly, had allegedly been pressuring Jitendra to sell his ancestral land to purchase a house and a car. The family alleged that Jyoti, along with her parents, Kalicharan and Chameli, and her brother, Deepak, repeatedly harassed him and threatened to implicate him in false dowry cases if he refused.Relatives told police that Jitendra had expressed fears for his safety and had clearly stated his unwillingness to sell the family property. Police said the couple had known each other for nearly seven years and had married two months ago against the wishes of their families.SP (city) Manush Pareek told TOI, “We questioned the woman’s family. After the autopsy confirmed strangulation, the case is being treated as murder.” Police are also examining whether opposition to the inter-caste marriage may have played a role in the killing. Further action will be taken based on evidence collected and ongoing questioning, officials said.