Bhatkal man allegedly tortured by in-laws, rescued from under a cot

He had scars on the back and ears, one of the finger nails was pulled out. His shaved head had bruises
Bhatkal man allegedly tortured by in-laws, rescued from under a cot
Bhatkal man allegedly tortured by in-laws, rescued from under a cot

A 27-year-old man was found hiding under a cot in his in-laws’ house by the Bhatkal town police in Dakshina Kannada district on Wednesday night. In a rather different case of marital harassment, a man was allegedly tortured by his in-laws and kept locked up in the house.

Muhammed Affan Sheikh, a resident of Makhdoom colony in Bhatkal town, was found hiding in his in-laws’ house in Gulmi area, fearing being assaulted by his in-laws, said Bhatkal town police inspector Prashanth Nayak.

The police have registered a case against four people for voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means under sections of IPC.

They have arrested Affan’s wife Zameel, her mother Zulekha (40), and her father Mohammud Abbas (43). However, Zameela’s 20-year-old brother Salim, who had allegedly been harassing the victim for three months, is at large.

“Even the family members have no clue where he has gone,” said Nayak.

Zameela (24) and Affan have been married for two years and have a one-year-old boy.

Affan was found by the police after a tip-off from the men from the sports-club in Bilalkhand in Gulmi, who suspected that something wrong was happening in the house. He was immediately taken to the government hospital in neighbouring Udupi district for treatment the same day.

“When we found him, he had scars on the back and ears, one of the finger nails was pulled out. His shaved head had bruises too,” said Nayak.

Affan told the police that Salim would hit him on the head until it bled and even recently shaved his head.

Nayak said that initially, Affan was working at a mosque to call out the morning prayers and earning Rs 1,000 a month, which was insufficient to run the house.

Around three months ago, he started working at a fruit shop, Nayak said. The family claimed that Affan would spend Rs 200 out of the Rs 300 that he earned at the fruit shop every day and his wife’s family demanded that he bring home all day’s earnings, Nayak said.

According to Affan’s statement to the police, unable to bear the torture, in November 2015 he fled to Vijaywada. He was brought back by his father-in-law, who later kept him locked in the house in Gulmi. In the last two months since the torture started, Zulekha threw hot water on his back and even branded his back with hot spatula, said Nayak.

While Affan is still being treated in the hospital, the police have set up a special team to look for Salim and the investigation is underway.​

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