He Was Depressed Over Ex-Wife's Move To UK, Then He Died By Suicide

Days after a man from Punjab's Ludhiana died by suicide, his ex-wife, currently in London, released a video alleging mental torture and dowry harassment by her in-laws.

The Ludhiana Police had registered a case against Kirandeep Kaur and her parents based on a complaint filed by 24-year-old Sunil Kumar's family, who have blamed her for his death. In their statement, the man's parents claimed that his ex-wife moved to England and had severed contact with him after leaving India, which allegedly pushed him into depression and eventually led to his suicide.

Kumar and Kaur got married in June 2019, the village sarpanch Sukhwinder Singh said, adding that the man also sold a plot of land worth Rs 11 lakh to finance Kaur's travel to England. He alleged that Kaur and her parents made Kumar sign divorce documents without his knowledge and also assured him that she would call him to England later.

Sukhwinder Singh said that after the two divorced in September 2024, Kaur married Gurpreet Singh a month later. Kumar's mother added that he himself had solemnised Kaur's second marriage in court as it was being done to facilitate her move to England on a study visa. His family said that the understanding was that once she reached England, the woman would divorce Gurpreet Singh and remarry Kumar. 

A year later, the woman left for England and was allegedly seen off by Kumar. On reaching the UK, the sarpanch said, she stopped taking Kumar and his family's calls.

Responding to these allegations, Kaur said in her video that Kumar and his parents had repeatedly harrassed her for dowry since as early as 3-4 days of them getting married. She claimed repeated threats of suicide from his end, a behaviour his family members later told her he exhibited even before their marriage. She refuted that he was pressured for a divorce, adding that it was finalised in court in August 2024 and that she has the papers.

Holding a B.Ed. degree, Kaur said she never wanted to go abroad and was forced by her husband to take the IELTS and go abroad. Later, she said, Kumar's family began torturing her mentally about her family not agreeing to share the expenses of sending her abroad.

Kaur further contradicted the family's claims of a 2019 wedding, saying they got married in June 2021. She said that they had not spoken for 25 days before he died by suicide on December 8.

An FIR against Kaur, her parents and Gurpreet Singh has been registered under the Sections 108 (abetment to suicide), 318 (4) (cheating), 3(5) (criminal act done with common intention) of Bharat Nyay Sanhita.