An IIM Ahmedabad graduate recently took to social media to share her family’s distressing experience of alleged extortion by her former sister-in-law. In a YouTube video, which has since gone viral, Prathyusha Challa, a Hyderabad resident, shared that her brother, an assistant professor at an engineering college in Hyderabad, had tied the knot with a woman from Rajamundry in 2019. However, Ms Challa said that the marriage lasted just 10 days before her now-former sister-in-law left the home and filed a domestic violence case against the family.
“She misbehaved with my parents, spoke foul language, and did not let my brother into his own bedroom. She often threatened suicide. This was clearly an extortion plan by my sister-in-law, her sister, her brother, and her boyfriend. Her sister had also executed a similar extortion plan with her in-laws,” Ms Challa alleged in the video.
“Ten days after she left our home, she filed a 498 case (Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that deals with cruelty against a married woman by her husband or his relatives) against us. The FIR was filed without our knowledge or any investigation,” she continued.
Watch the video below:
Ms Challa said that five years have gone by since the incident, however, a trial is yet to commence. “This has been traumatising. My parents’ health has declined,” she said.
She also spoke about how the case has impacted her career. “Despite my flawless academic records, I have been unable to find a job,” she said, pointing to the pending criminal case as a major obstacle.
Ms Challa shared the video on YouTube a few weeks back. Since then it has surfaced on several social media platforms and garnered millions of views.
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Reacting to the video, one user wrote, “It’s honestly so sad to see how many men are getting trapped in false cases these days. Nobody’s saying real victims shouldn’t be heard, but false accusations are literally ruining lives. It’s scary how easy it is for someone to destroy someone’s career or family with just one lie. We need to talk about this more and find a way to stop it.”
“I wonder when there are so many victims .. Why there’s no systematic process of punishment to the girl who filed false case,” said another.
“This needs to be addressed & some changes should come in the law which are favourable towards men aswell. Due to this false case see how many lives are affected . If you think only the bride is women then who is the mother & sister of the groom here. Doesnt look good atall,” committed a third.
“This is a new business model I believe! Marry a good guy, live with him for a week, file 498 and that’s it. Police, judiciary, married girl all know that they got the money making machine,” said another.
