Vashi police suspect victim's family members abducted her for marrying against their wishes and running away from home
A 23-year-old woman from Mangalore was kidnapped by four people on Sunday, who whisked her away in a car when she was out for shopping with her husband. The latter has lodged a complaint with the Vashi police, who suspect the victim's family behind this, as she had eloped from her hometown and gotten married in Mumbai against their wishes.
Reshma Ashok Kumar Kunil and Mohammed Iqbal Mohammed Umar Chaudhary
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The woman, Reshma Ashok Kumar Kunil, had befriended Mohammed Iqbal Mohammed Umar Chaudhary, 28, a resident of Mankhurd, on Facebook seven years ago. They met for the first time four years ago, after which their friendship blossomed into a relationship and they got married in secret this July.
Hush-hush courtship
Chaudhary, who works as an assistant engineer with a Navi Mumbai-based firm, told the police that his wife was studying to be a lawyer. In his statement, he added that after they got into a relationship four years go, they decided to keep it under wraps for fear of her family's opposition, and he went to Mangalore several times to meet her.
Until last year, even Chaudhary's family was against the union. However, his parents came around and that's when the two decided to get married. In early July 2017, Chaudhary went to Mangalore and brought Kunil to Mumbai. She converted to Islam, and on July 15, they had a nikaah in Chembur, later getting the marriage registered in Bandra court.
On Sunday evening, the couple went to Vashi at 4 pm for shopping. "We visited Inorbit Mall first and then decided to head to Raghuleela Mall. After we exited the former and were walking on the road, four people came and started assaulting me. They were shouting 'you brought our sister to Mumbai, leave her; we are taking her back' and put her in a car and fled towards Sanpada. This happened around 4.45 pm," said Chaudhary.
He then approached the Vashi police. "I suspect her parents have taken her back to Mangalore… they were against our union, and she hadn't told them anything. She had left them a letter though, saying she was in a relationship with me and was leaving so that we could get married. She'd written that she would be happy with me."
What the police say
A senior officer from Vashi police station confirmed that a case under sections 365 (kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code had been registered and they were investigating the matter.
"We have started gathering details about the car in which she was taken. We suspect that they have already escaped to Mangalore on a train. If she has gone of her own will, then the case won't stand. But if she has been kidnapped, even by her own parents, we will arrest all those involved in the crime," he added.
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