A horrific incident has come to light in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh, where a 25-year-old woman was allegedly subjected to extreme cruelty at the hands of her husband and his family. The woman claims that after resisting an attempted sexual harassment by her husband’s friend, she was stripped of her clothes and forced out of the marital home.

According to a report in The Times of India, the woman contacted the police and detailed the entire ordeal, including repeated harassment and dowry demands from her in-laws. The family demanded an additional dowry of Rs 5 lakh, a car and a gold chain, the report said.

According to the police complaint, the woman stated that on February 5, during the day, her husband’s friend forcefully entered her room. He allegedly overpowered her, stripped her and attempted to sexually assault her. It is said that her loud screams frightened him.

When she immediately reported the incident to her husband and mother-in-law, instead of getting support, she was reprimanded for filing the complaint. “After I complained to my husband and mother-in-law about this, I was reprimanded, and my husband took off my clothes and sent me away from home,” she said.

Following her complaint, a case was registered on Saturday, November 8, against seven people, including her husband, his five family members and his friend, for allegedly trying to rape her and force her out of the house in a topless state.

“The woman’s husband, his five family members and a friend have been booked under BNS sections 85 (experiencing woman to cruelty by husband or his relatives), 76 (forcing woman to remove her clothes), 115 (2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 352 (intentional insult), 351 (3) (criminal intimidation), and appropriate sections of the Dowry Prohibition Act.” Songarhi, Manoj Kumar Tyagi, said, according to TOI.

She also revealed that on March 20, her husband dropped her off at her parents’ house with instructions to return only if her father could meet the additional dowry requirements. Earlier, she had reported the matter to Pilibhit SP Abhishek Yadav on October 6, after which she and her husband were summoned to the family counseling centre. But her husband refused to continue living with her.

The woman’s husband works as an accounts officer in a government department in Bareilly. The couple got married in November 2024. Reportedly, the incident happened a few months after their marriage.