On Tuesday, Shivakumar, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) for Whitefield, confirmed that Bengaluru-based tech professional Atul Subhash took his own life in the early hours of December 9 due to harassment from his wife and her family. Media reports indicate that the DCP stated, 'Atul Subhash committed suicide in the early hours of December 9. A complaint has been filed at the Marathahalli police station in Bengaluru regarding this incident. He was also facing several cases in Uttar Pradesh.'
The official stated, 'His wife and her relatives demanded money from him to resolve the matter and harassed him. Consequently, he took his own life. Following this complaint, we have filed an FIR against the suspects. An investigation is currently in progress.'
Advocate Awadhesh Tiwari from Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, discussed this case with media, stating, 'On December 9, we were informed that he had committed suicide. The accusations are directed at his wife, her mother, uncle, and brother.' He added, 'His wife had filed several cases against him, including one for maintenance, which we were handling, and others for dowry and assault, which were managed by other lawyers. Atul Subhash, originally from Samastipur in Bihar, was living in Bengaluru for work. He contacted me regarding a case. Atul and his family faced dowry and assault charges from his wife and her family,' the lawyer noted.
He further mentioned that the court settled the maintenance issue in July 2024, requiring him to pay 20,000 for his son, which was later increased to Rs 40,000 per month. The wife's additional financial requests were denied by the court. The case of Bengaluru techie Atul Subhash, who died by suicide allegedly due to harassment by his estranged wife, has sparked a discussion on the potential misuse of the dowry law.
Abha Singh, a lawyer from Mumbai, called the case a 'gross misuse of law' arguing that false accusations and harassment contributed to the victim's death, who was tormented by his wife and in-laws. 'Dowry laws, intended to protect women, should not be exploited because if some women misuse these laws, it will ultimately deny justice to those who truly need them,' she stated.
She stated that Atul Subhash had been let down by the system, which ultimately led to his suicide. Meanwhile, an FIR has been registered against four individuals in connection with the incident. The FIR, based on a complaint by Atul's brother Bikas Kumar, was filed at the Marathahalli police station in Bengaluru. The FIR has been lodged under section 108 (abetment of suicide) and section 3 (5) (joint criminal liability for actions with common intent) of the BNS. The FIR names the techie's wife Nikita Singhania, his mother-in-law Nisha Singhania, his wife's brother Anurag Singhania, and his wife's uncle Sushil Singhania.
The FIR states that Atul Subhash married Nikita Singhania in 2019 and they had a child together. The complaint claims that after their divorce, the four accused filed a false case against Atul Subhash and demanded Rs 3 crore for its settlement. Additionally, it alleges that Atul Subhash's wife demanded Rs 30 lakh to permit him to see his now four-year-old son. The complaint further asserts that Atul died by suicide due to mental and physical harassment.
Following the complaint, a case has been filed and an investigation is in progress. In his suicide note, Atul Subhash demanded justice, repeatedly writing 'Justice is Due' on all 24 pages. Subhash, along with his wife and her relatives, also accused a family court judge in Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, of ignoring him, and alleged that a court officer accepted bribes in the judge's presence.
Subhash made a video outlining his supposed harassment and asked his family not to scatter his ashes until justice is served. His suicide note contained a message for his four-year-old son, whom he said had been kept from him. The note also asked that his parents be given custody of his child.
The message and the video link were shared in the WhatsApp group of an NGO he was associated with. In his suicide note, Subhash claimed that his wife had lodged nine cases against him, including accusations of murder, sexual misconduct, financial harassment, domestic violence, and dowry demands.