A pregnant woman died in Chattogram’s Patiya Upazila on early Monday after allegedly being tortured by her husband and in-laws over dowry demands.
Police took the victim’s husband, Nur Uddin, 25, into custody for interrogation and sent the body of Tania Kamal Nihat, 20, to Chattogram Medical College Hospital (CMCH) morgue for a post-mortem examination to establish the exact cause of death.
The incident occurred around 2:30am at Monaf Hajir Para in Charkanai, under Habilasdwip Union.
The deceased, Tania, was the daughter of Mohammad Kamal of Harinkhain village in Ward 5 of Kusumpura Union under Patiya Upazila.
Her husband, Nur, is the son of Kanchan Mia of Monaf Hajir Para in Ward 6 of Habilasdwip Union.
According to local sources, Tania and Nur had been in an affair for four to five years before marrying with the consent of both families in February this year.
However, marital discord erupted within months of the wedding.
Tania’s family alleged that her husband and in-laws repeatedly pressured her for dowry and gifts, particularly demanding new clothes and presents ahead of Eid.
Although her family provided gifts according to their financial capacity during Ramadan, similar demands were renewed recently.
Due to financial constraints, her family was unable to meet the latest demands, leading to severe physical and mental torture inflicted on Tania.
Tania’s elder sister said her in-laws physically assaulted Tania even in front of her family members, but they chose not to intervene to safeguard her marriage.
Her father, Mohammad Kamal, said after fulfilling initial gift demands during Ramadan, fresh demands for clothes and dowry were made, which he could not afford.
He added that multiple arbitration sessions (salish) involving local dignitaries were held to resolve the dispute but yielded no improvement.
Patiya Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ziaul Haque confirmed that Nur remains in police custody for questioning while the autopsy report is awaited to confirm the cause of death.
This incident comes just days after another three-month pregnant woman, 22-year-old Sifatun Nur Sifat, died in the same upazila on 23 October.
