Delhi woman dies after falling off from NDMC Flats, family alleges murder: Husband ‘tortured her’, demanded ₹20 lakh

A woman died after she reportedly fell from the third floor of an NDMC residential complex in Lodhi Colony, Delhi, on Sunday. Police launched a probe into the incident.

The woman's brother accused her husband of physical abuse and torture.

Amay Sutar, the woman's brother, said, “We found out about all this last night, between 9:30 and 10:00 PM. When we called the police station, we learned that my sister had met with an accident or some sort of mishap.”

When we arrived here, we were made to wait for about an hour; we were told she was in the hospital and we had to wait for a call. Later, we were informed that she was no more...," he said.

He added that the woman "had been suffering for a long time."

Sutar alleged, "Her husband used to blame her excessively. He would torture her, harbour extreme suspicions, and even physically abuse her... when she told us, we took action just two to three days before this incident occurred..."

More details awaited.

All that we know about the case

The woman was identified Akriti, 28-year-old newlywed woman, who was a resident of Pushp Vihar in Delhi, NDTV reported.

On Saturday evening, she was reportedly found critically injured after an alleged fall from the third floor of the NDMC Flats at Palika Kunj in Delhi's Lodhi Colony.

The place was around 10 km from her marital home and it is not yet known why she had gone there, the report claimed.

According to NDTV report, she was found lying on the ground by the residents who called in the police.

There was no blood on the ground though her body bore bruises and other injuries, it added.

The woman was immediately taken to the AIIMS Trauma Centre, where doctors declared her dead.

An officer of the South Delhi police, Anant Mittal, told NDTV that the woman was found injured after an alleged fall from the residential complex.

"Proceedings under Section 196 BNSS (Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023) have been initiated and the Sub Divisional Magistrate has been informed for inquest proceedings. However, all aspects of the incident are being verified. The inquiry is in progress," he said.

A postmortem examination is in progress.

Police reportedly said that Akriti was working as a Sales Executive with a private company in Chhatarpur. She had married Arastu Sikka on April 24. The two had known each other for eight years.

Akriti had first become friends with Arastu's sister, Agastika Sikka, before developing a relationship with Arastu.

Sikka is currently unemployed. His father is a government servant but he never divulges any details regarding his work, NDTV reported.

No suicide, but murder

Akriti Sutar's family rejected the question of suicide as her husband's family had suggested and claimed that she was murdered.

They claimed that her husband, Arastu Sikka, and his family have been demanding ₹20 lakh. The in-laws subjected Akriti to repeated harassment and threats since the marriage, the family alleged.

The family also claimed that Arastu had threatened to kill her on multiple occasions and that the couple had a serious argument just two days before her death.

Akriti's uncle Mananjay Sutar was quoted by NDTV as saying, "Akriti had spoken to her mother around 6 pm on Saturday — hours before her death. She had said that she had left the office for the day and was on her way home."

"Around 8 pm, the family received a call from Arastu saying Akriti was missing. Nearly 90 minutes later, the police informed them that a woman's body had been found at Palika Kunj," the uncle claimed.

According to the family, Akriti had resumed work on July 1 after taking leave for her wedding and had even hosted a small party for her colleagues on Saturday.

"If she was unhappy or planning to end her life, why would she celebrate her return to work?" her uncle said, questioning the suicide theory.

Mint could not verify these claims.