Bengaluru techie’s suicide: We want justice at any cost, says his brother

PATNA: Bikash Kumar, the brother of Bengaluru-based techie Atul Subhash, who died by suicide, stated on Wednesday that the family is determined to seek justice, alleging that Atul endured “extreme harassment”. He further claimed that many men in India face false accusations, which has turned the law into a “cruel joke”.

Speaking to the media, Bikash Kumar said, “The suicide note my brother left begins with the words, ‘Justice is due’. We want justice at any cost”. He continued, “In his note, he wrote that if he gets justice, his ashes should be immersed in the Ganga. However, if justice is denied, his ashes should be thrown into a drain outside the court. If there is any law in India that protects men, we want to know about it. My brother endured extreme harassment, and there are countless others like him in the country who are falsely accused. False cases are being filed against men, and the law is being misused”.

#WATCH | Patna | The Brother of Atul Subhash who committed suicide on the 9th of December in Bengaluru, Bikash Kumar says, “The suicide note that my brother has written – the very first line he has written is – Justice is Due. We want justice at any cost…” pic.twitter.com/fyziuyKtx9

— ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2024

Earlier, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Whitefield, Bengaluru, Shivakumar, confirmed that Atul Subhash died by suicide on December 9, allegedly due to harassment from his wife and her family.

The DCP said, “Atul Subhash died by suicide in the early hours of December 9. A complaint has been lodged at the Marathahalli police station in Bengaluru regarding the incident. Several cases were pending against him in Uttar Pradesh”.

He added, “His wife and her family demanded money to settle these cases and harassed him. This led him to take his own life. Based on the complaint, we have registered an FIR against the accused, and an investigation is under way”.

The tragic case of Atul Subhash has reignited a broader debate over the misuse of dowry laws in India. The Supreme Court has previously raised concerns about the growing trend of misusing Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which addresses cruelty by husbands and their relatives against married women.

In a related instance, while dismissing a Section 498A IPC case against a husband and his parents, a bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and N Kotiswar Singh observed that the provision is sometimes exploited as a tool for personal vendetta against the husband and his family. (ANI)