Woman alleges dowry harassment

CHENNAI: A 26-year-old woman on Friday lodged a complaint with the all-women police station, Ambattur, against her husband alleging that he was denying her conjugal rights.
Vinitha (name changed) claimed that her husband, Joy Sundar, was insisting that she hand over the 120 sovereigns of gold jewellery that she had brought from her parental home at the time of her wedding.
Meanwhile, on learning that Vinitha had approached the police, Joy Sundar fled to the US a few days ago, police said.
In her complaint, Vinitha said she was a graduate and her marriage with Sundar, a software engineer in the US, was held in Chennai three months ago. Her parents had given 120 sovereigns of gold jewellery and several lakhs of rupees as dowry, but she had kept the gold and cash in a bank locker.
Vinitha claimed that her husband denied her conjugal rights as a means of forcing her to part with the jewellery. ���Whenever I came close to him, he turned away on purpose and kept himself engaged in some work or pleaded that he was not well. When I asked him (about this), he said he wanted the gold jewellery,��� she mentioned in her complaint.
She approached the city police commissioner, R Sekar, and sought his help. As the couple lived at Ambattur, the petition was forwarded to the Ambattur all-women police station.
However, Sundar fled to the US before the police personnel could summon him for an inquiry. The police have registered a case.
Recently, the Delhi High Court has observed that denial of sex is sufficient ground for divorce. The court gave the verdict after hearing a victim Ajay Kumar���s plea in June last.
Justice S Murlidhar ordered dissolution of a 13-year-old marriage on the plea of the husband. The denial of sexual gratification could amount to mental cruelty and sufficient ground for divorce, said the court.