The case of Lufthansa air hostess Anissia Batra, who is said to have killed herself in South Delhi by jumping off the terrace of her Panchsheel Park residence on Friday, July 13, is getting murkier by the day. The police on Monday, July 16, arrested her husband Mayank Singhvi who said that Anissia had sent him a text message saying that she was going to take her life.
However, the 39-year-old woman's parents have alleged that the Singhvi family was behind Anissia's death and that she was often harassed by her husband and in-laws for dowry.
In a series of revelations, Anissia's parents have spoken about how she was in an abusive marriage and had issues since the very beginning. Anissia's mother Neelam Batra also said that Mayank was, in fact, a divorcee and had hidden this aspect of his life from Anissia and her family.
"The abuse began during the couple's honeymoon itself. Singhvi beat her up in the room and lobby of the hotel they were staying at. She had to move to safety at a friend's place and returned to India alone," Neelam said in her complaint to the police, reported Hindustan Times.
Neelam added that the harassment never really ended and that Mayank continued abusing her daughter over the two years even though his family assured Anissia's parents that he would mend his ways. "Singhvi would drink and beat my daughter," she said.
Anissia's mother also explained that the couple had started fighting more frequently since April, due to which her parents often visited the duo. "But Singhvi wanted us out of the house. Once he beat me up too — an act that left his bracelet broken. His parents would instigate him over the phone," Neelam alleged.
Anissia's brother Karan Batra too had spoken of this incident a few days ago and believed that the Singhvi family was responsible for Anissia's death.
Monetary matters too reportedly became an issue between the couple and Anissia selling her flat seems to have become a bone of contention between them. The air hostess is said to have sold her flat in south Delhi's Vasant Vihar for Rs 1.2 crore in February. "Anissia had kept the money in her bank account, but Singhvi allegedly wanted the money. He would fight over that," the investigator told HT on the condition of anonymity.
The air hostess' parents had earlier also alleged that the police was not taking up the case seriously and that Mayank had even been able to remove evidence from the crime spot. However, Romil Baaniya, deputy commissioner of police (south) refuted these claims and said that the police was doing everything it could to solve the case. He also said that the police had not sealed the crime spot as the evidence had also been taken from there.
"The crime team reached the spot as and when they were informed. The allegations made by parents are being considered and therefore a team from the Forensic Science Laboratory team was sent to the spot for recreating the crime scene," the Press Trust of India quoted him as saying.
While the case was opened after Anissia allegedly killed herself on July 13, her family had made a complaint about Mayank before that. In the complaint, RS Batra, a retired major general, had stated that Anissia was being tortured by her in-laws and if something happens to her, the husband and in-laws would be responsible for it.
However, Mayank has consistently said that Anissia jumped off the building after telling him that she was going to take her life. He said that he had rushed to the terrace, but his wife had already jumped off the building. Mayank then reportedly took Anissia to the hospital, but she was declared brought dead.
